


Slicked Back With Grease

by Ohshitmyship



Category: Supernatural
Genre: 50s Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Grease, Alternate Universe - High School, Destiel - Freeform, Homophobic John, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-27
Updated: 2016-06-07
Packaged: 2018-05-16 12:41:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 22,988
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5829352
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ohshitmyship/pseuds/Ohshitmyship
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Castiel Novak and Dean Winchester spent the best summer of their lives together. Unfortunately, like all summers, it came to an end. The boys parted ways, promising to meet again someday and maybe rekindle the love they had. Little do they know that "someday" is coming very soon. Follow the Destiel and co. in an adventure featuring 50s aesthetics and attitudes, school dances, romance, drive ins, and, of course, grease!</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Summer Days

**Author's Note:**

> Please note: This story starts off a lot like Grease in the beginning. And I mean a lot. However, it branches off pretty soon to better for the characters and their problems. Also, this has Baby in it, of course. I mean, in earlier drafts I had this set in 1968/69 and Baby was a brand new car totally wrecked by some asshole and donated to Bobby's hobby junkyard, who gave it to John, who in turn gave it to Dean, who fixed it up better than ever. But Grease is in the 50s and it just wouldn't work, so I'm cheating just a little bit, okay?

       Summer. Circa 52

Salty waves pounded the sand and splashed against the rocks that littered the shallows. Seagulls flew overhead, lifted by the wam, end-of-summer breeze.

Two teenage boys splashed around and laughed in the surf. They chased each other through the waves, trying their best to ignore the way the ocean was cooler than before.

They built a sand castle, better than any one they had built all summer. One boy, Dean, stood in front of it, smiling proudly. His green eyes sparkled and his brown hair was crusted with salt.

The other boy, Castiel, held a camera. He too was smiling, his blue eyes crinkling, his black hair windswept. He tried to direct Dean so that he and their castle would both be in the frame. Instead, Dean tripped and promptly smooshed their castle. Castiel laughed, making Dean laugh too.

They spent the rest of the day laughing and playing and basically having the best time. All too soon, however, the sun started to set over the ocean. The two boys stood on the rocks that were up the beach, away from the crowds.

"Dean," Castiel said at last.

"Cas," Was Dean's reply. He turned his head to smile at him, only to frown when he saw Cas's face, "What's wrong?"

Cas sighed, "It's just... Tomorrow, I leave for Canada. I might never see you again. I don't want this summer to end."

Dean spoke softly but forcefully, trying to comfort Cas, "Don't talk like that Cas, of course we'll see each other again!"

"But this summer's been the best of my life," Cas protested, "It's just unfair that it has to end." Cas lowered his gaze, unable to look Dean in the eye. He wanted to say more, a lot more, but he just wasn't sure _what_.

Dean guided Cas's chin so that their gaze met again. After a moment, they both leaned in, kissing each other softly but with a tone of desperation. Then Dean smirked and pushed forward, giving more to the kiss.

"Dean!" Cas pulled back and laughed. Dean saw this as an opportunity to go for his neck, "Dean," He said again, still laughing. He gently pushed Dean away from him, but there still wasn't much space between them, "You're spoiling the moment, I believe!"

Dean just flashed his cocky grin, "I'm not spoiling it! I'm only making it better!"

Cas smiled, but he felt himself growing wary again and his smile slowly slid off his face, "Dean," he asked, "Is this the end?" He feared the answer he would get. Why did he have to ask that? Surely it couldn't be good, no matter the outcome....

Dean's grin softened and he brought Cas a little closer, "Of course not!" He laughed, "It's only the beginning."


	2. Back to School

The First Day.

_"Hey there this is the big brain, Dick Fontaine, beginning your day with the only way! Music, music, music! Gotta get outta bed, it's the first day of school! Don't be a slob, don't get a job, get back to class, you can pass. And to start off the day nice and fine, here's a new old favourite of mine."_

Dean groaned into his pillow, fumbling for the snooze button. He loved music, especially rock n roll, but he was not ready to wake up. Not at all. He rolled over so he was lying on his back and stared at the ceiling.

He couldn't believe that it was school already.

Like Cas had told him a couple days prior, that past summer had been the best of his life. He closed his eyes, giving himself five minutes to mourn the loss of summer and the promise of seeing Cas every day.

_Five_. He remembered the sun sparkling on the water. The ocean never being able to even come close to the blue that was Cas's eyes. He remembered sun burning his eyes and stars in the indigo skies. He remembered the messy black flop of Cas's hair.

_Four_. He remembered the hot sand underneath his toes, the cool waves pounding over his skin. He remembered cold rain soaking him and Cas to the bone, effectively ruining their picnic. He remembered running his hands through Cas's salt-crusted hair, the feeling of his lips pressed against Dean's. He remembered his soft hands, very different from his; calloused after years in a mechanics garage.

_Three_. He remembered sounds of wave pounding the surf and crashing against rocks. He remembered the gulls flying and calling overhead, the squeals of kids playing at the beach. He remembered Castiel's gravelly voice that was far too deep for a teenager and his beautiful laughter that would ring in Dean's ears.

_Two_. He remembered the scent of the ocean; salt and fish and sun. He remembered the smell of fresh rain simmering on the pavement and the scent of ozone right before a lightning storm. He remembered sunscreen and the strawberry coconut scent that Cas always wore.

_One_. He remembered the taste of melting ice cream eaten hastily. He remembered the taste of the ocean choking him on that fateful day. He remembered the taste of countless hotdogs and hamburgers grilled to perfection. He remembered the taste of Cas's lips and his tongue. Hell, just the taste of _Cas_.

_Zero_. He sighed and sat up, dragging himself out of bed. Summer had been great, but now it was back to school. This was his last year of goofing off before he had to really hike up his socks and take over the family business.

He loved working with cars, he really did. If he could work as a mechanic for the rest of his life, he'd be fine with that. But he didn't like being forced into it. His dad expected him to take over and take charge, but Dean didn't really want to do it, at least not for the reasons that his dad did. Sure, keeping the family business alive for three generations was great and all, but it wasn't what Dean wanted. He wanted to fix cars and help people, maybe even build cars. He had already fixed up that broken Impala to look brand new; Dean knew he had talent with cars. His dad did too, and after he graduated, Dean would be responsible for taking over the shop.

Dean forced himself to shove that thought away and get ready.

He put on a plain white tee shirt and jeans, nothing special. He went to comb his hair, but it didn't need it. It was cut close to his head, since his dad insisted that the long haired guys spending dozens on hair grease were thugs and losers and delinquents.

At that moment, Sam came in, blinking the sleep out of his eyes. His hair, however, was a disaster. As a constant taunt against their dad, Sam refused to cut his hair anywhere shorter than his chin. It was long and flowy and he loved to slick it back or just comb it and let it hang.

Sam was a year younger than Dean, already in the eleventh grade. Instead of also submitting to the family business like Dean was, Sam had insisted on choosing a career path best suited for him; a lawyer. Their dad was still trying to talk him out of it, but Sam wouldn't budge. He and and their father had always had a rocky relationship, probably due to the fact that their mom died shortly after Sam was born.

Soon they were rushing around, grabbing their books and pencils and whatever spare learning things they had. On the way out, they both grabbed their leather jackets. Sam grabbed the one that identified him as a member of the Hunters: black with the word Hunters written on the back in white in a bolded font. Dean had one too, but he always wore his old black one. It was plain and weathered, but it was his favourite and he'd had it for as long as he could remember, even if it had only started fitting him last year. Even in his last year of high school, it was a little too big.

As Dean grabbed it, an image of Cas wearing it on a cool night spent stargazing flashed across his mind. He shook the image out of his head and shrugged the jacket on, hopping into his fixed up Chevy Impala, better known as Baby. As Sam slid in the passenger seat, he turned on the ignition and backed out of the driveway.

Dean knew he had it bad for Cas. Knew it the moment Castiel dragged his half drowned ass to shore. Dean knew that he would miss him, but he couldn't let it ruin his year. Cas knew Dean's address, so he could send him a letter any time he wanted. Dean had never thought to ask for his address and was really starting to regret it. He knew Cas would write him, but Cas was a busy guy and Dean was anxious.

Far too soon they pulled into the school's parking lot and slid into a spot. Sam got out of the car and went to find the rest of the Hunters. Dean was right behind him until a group of girls by the main doors caught his eye. They giggled and waved and called to him. Not missing an opportunity to flirt, Dean happily went over.

_But Cas...._ A voice in his head said.

_Cas is in Canada, thousands of miles away._ The other protested _. A little flirt never hurt anybody. Besides, this is a good way to take my mind off Cas, if only for a few minutes._

While Dean flirted with girls, the rest of the Hunters were goofing off as they made their way through the courtyard.

Gabriel tossed a packaged lunch to Kevin, who was promptly shoved into the shrubbery by Benny, who snatched his stolen lunch back and shoved it in his pocket where Gabriel couldn't reach it.

"Did the old lady drag her carcass out of bed to make that for ya?" Gabriel teased.

Benny smiled good-naturedly, "Every first day of school. Even though I can cook far better."

The three laughed until Kevin pointed at a very tall figure approaching, "Hey guys, it's Sam!"

Gabriel whooped excitedly and hopped over to Sam, Benny and Kevin eagerly following in pursuit. The three of them were wearing their matching leather jackets, which Sam was happy to see.

"Hey guys!" He called and the three friends crowded in around him and slapped him on the back.

"Hey brother," Benny drawled in his thick Louisiana accent, "What'chu been doin' all summer?"

"Yeah," Kevin said, "We didn't see you or Dean all summer!"

Sam shrugged, "I was working. You know I have to pay for law school all on my own. What about you guys? What did you do?"

"That's our Sammy," Gabriel said with laughter in his voice, "Always so responsible. As for me, I spent most of the summer with Kali."

"Wait," Sam said, "Kali The Destroyer? Isn't she that exchange student from India?"

Gabriel grinned, "Yup. And let me tell you, they don't call her The Destroyer for nothin!" They all laughed.

"That's fortunate of you, brother," Benny said, "I spent the summer with my grandparents down in the bayou. The food is divine and the girls are almost as delicious."

Kevin sighed, "I didn't have any time for girls at all! When I wasn't with Gabe I was in summer school! Even though I've got top grades, I'm never free." They all laughed again before Gabriel tossed an arm on Sam's shoulder and smirked.

"Speaking of never free, where's old Deano?"

Sam smiled and jerked his head behind him where Dean was still surrounded by the group of girls. The Hunters started hollering his name and he turned around with a smirk on his face. He waved off the girls and strode over to them, happy to see his old gang after not seeing them for the whole summer.

"Hey, brother," Benny greeted.

"Hey guys," Dean said as he ruffled Kevin's hair, "You two aren't traumatizing the kids, are ya?"

"I'm only a year younger," Kevin protested.

"Dean," Sam said with a laugh, "We're not kids!"

Dean didn't stop smirking, "You're younger than me, and as far as I'm concerned, that means you're still kids."

The group laughed again before Gabriel sidled up to him with an evil grin, "So, Deano, care to tell us where you were all summer? We hadn't seen hide nor tail of ya!"

"I was at the beach all summer," He replied with an easy shrug. It wasn't a lie, not at all. He just wasn't telling them who he was at the beach with.

"Gettin' all the beach babes, eh?" Gabriel accused.

"Yeah, I guess you could say that," Dean said with slightly less ease. He had only gotten one beach "babe" all summer, and that was Cas. He certainly was good-looking enough to qualify as a "babe", hell, he surpassed it by far.

Before they could pester him with more questions, the bell rang and Dean was almost relieved to go back into the terrible building that was school.

Across campus, an old brown car pulled up about the same time as Dean did, but on the opposite end. The car parked and Castiel stepped out of the passenger seat, waving his father off to let him know that he could handle it from there. His father nodded and smiled, pulling out of the parking lot.

Cas watched him go for a moment before turning to face the daunting crowds of what were to be his fellow classmates. This high school was certainly bigger than his old one had been. He stood for a moment, unsure of where to go and what to do, when suddenly red hair and a pink jacket caught his eye.

"Hey!" Called his cousin, Anna. She was wearing her pink leather jacket with the word Angels embroidered on the back in blue. She made her way over to Cas and he couldn't help but sigh in relief.

"Hey," She said again once she got close enough to talk properly, "It seems I beat Gabe, huh?" She said with a smile.

Cas nodded. The day before, his cousins had argued over what gang Cas should be in once he got to school. Gabriel, Anna's fraternal twin brother, had wanted Cas to join the Hunters. Anna had wanted him to join her gang, the Angels. They had asked Cas, but honestly he didn't really care since both groups were close friends. That hadn't helped, so they decided on a wager: whoever could find Cas first would get him in their group. Anna had prevailed.

"So this is Rydell, huh? It seems nice."

Anna shrugged, "It's alright, for a school. We have a pretty good time here, aside from the classes."  
  
Cas nodded, "Seems about right," Just as he was going to ask her about Dean and if she knew him, the bell rang.

"Come on," Anna said, cutting off the question he was about to ask, "We should get you to the office to pick up your schedule."

Cas nodded and followed along at a faster pace, listening while she told him where to meet at lunch, where the different classrooms were. Everything he needed to know, except for the one thing he wanted to.

As the bell rang, a pink car rolled into an empty parking space and three girls in pink leather jackets got out.

"Come on!" Charlie, the girl with short red hair called, "We don't wanna be late on the first day!"

"Calm down Charlie," Jo, the youngest of the group by a year, said with a smile, "It's only the warning bell. We've got time."

"Besides," Drawled Ruby, swinging her jacket over her shoulder and tossing her long black hair, "Who cares? It's our last year and ladies, we are going to rule this school."

The three girls made their way to the school as everyone filed in.

Cas waited anxiously at the office as the secretary, Hanna, searched through piles of papers, looking for his schedule.

"I found them!" She cried out triumphantly.

Naomi, the principal walked over and took them from her, scowling, "These are the ones from last semester! Maybe next year you'll find this year's!"

Hanna huffed and went back to searching.

"How many days left until Christmas break?" Groaned an older man, obviously a teacher, with a beer belly and a battered baseball cap.

Cas smiled and said, "87. I'm counting."

The man sighed in exasperation, "That's about 86 more than I need." Then he smiled at Cas, "I'm Bobby Singer, the gym teacher here. I'm guessing you just transferred?"

Castiel nodded, "Yes, I just came here from Canada."

"Ah," Bobby said, "People and the food are nice, but it's bloody cold."

Cas laughed. Then a slightly winded Hanna handed him his schedule, "Thank you," He said. Then he looked down at the note. If Anna had been right about where the classrooms were, then he was on the other side of school!

He bid a polite goodbye to Bobby before dashing off to first period chemistry. He ran through the empty halls, trying to make it to class on time. The second bell rang and he heard the announcements starting. He swore and ran faster, looking down at his schedule.

He hadn't noticed there was someone else in the hall until he smacked into their shoulder. Embarrassed, he kept his head down, apologized swiftly, then continued running.

He heard a voice behind him call "Wait!" but he ignored it. He hadn't seen the boy's face, but he had hardly budged when Cas had run into him, and he had definitely felt defined muscles. He would rather not get beat up on his first day in a new school.

Finally he reached his classroom, out of breath. He wheezed an apology to the teacher before sitting down. He could feel the eyes of his classmates following him and he tried not to feel too embarrassed. It was normal. As the announcements dragged on, eyes left him, but Cas could feel the gaze of a few girls. He knew he was good-looking, but being gay, he didn't care whether girls thought he was hot or not.

Dean stood in the hallway, dumbstruck. The guy that had just bumped into him had looked like Castiel. A lot like Castiel. He hadn't gotten a proper look at his face before he had dashed off, but he had seen a flash of blue that reminded him of summer days and warm nights.

But that couldn't be right. Cas was in Canada, far away from Dean. They would keep in contact, but it would be a long time before Dean would see those beautiful blues again. Maybe he was just being delusional.

"Brother," Benny said, giving him a wary look, "You alright? Look like you've seen a ghost."

Dean shook his head, "Nah. Just thought he looked like someone I know. Don't worry about it."

Gabriel and Benny exchanged a glance before shrugging and continuing the lazy walk to class. On their way, they joked and laughed.

"What?" Gabriel teased, "Little Kevin's not running off to class? What about Advanced Functions?" Then he ruffled his hair.

Kevin ducked out of the way and fixed his hair, "That can wait. It's only the first day, and announcements haven't even started."

"And what about Naomi?" Benny smiled. Everybody in the school knew the principal and the secretary by their first names. It had been Naomi's attempt at "strengthening relationships between faculty and students". No one else did it, though. But Naomi could be scary. She peered down her nose, scowled, and spoke in an icy calm that gave you goosebumps. Then she would slam you with a month of detention.

Kevin smiled, "Her? I'm not taking anything from her! Why the next time I see her, I'll-"

"Mr. Tran!" Came a demanding voice that made Kevin pale. The other boys snickered and backed into a corner, away from Naomi's sight. "Are you skipping class? On the first day? I thought you were better than that!"

"Yes ma'am, I mean no ma'am, I mean," Kevin sucked in a breath, "I'm just going for a walk. I'm on my way to class now."

Naomi scowled at him for a moment longer, "Good." Then she turned on her heels and marched back inside.

As she did, Kevin mumbled something in Mandarin. Naomi heard and stopped in the doorway. Then she marched right back out and got right up in Kevin's face.

"I would hurry up to class, Mr. Tran" She warned, "Or does your mother need to be notified?"

Kevin stuttered an apology. Apparently satisfied, Naomi went back into the office and didn't emerge again.

The boys crept out from their hiding place and came up to Kevin, snickering. Dean approached him and leaned down to be eye level with him. "Glad you didn't take any of her crap. Really woulda told her off, eh Kev?"

Kevin just rolled his eyes as the boys laughed. They put more of a spring in their step, not wanting to push their luck too much.

As they settled down in their classes, the four note tune played over the speakers shrilly, signalling the start of Announcents.

"Good morning, Rydell," Came Naomi's forced cheerful voice, "Today is the beginning of what I'm sure is to be the best one here at Rydell! On Friday night is our first pep rally, in support of our Coach Singer and our Rydell Rangers! Come out and cheer on the team, because if you can't be an athlete, be an athletic supporter! But here is the really good news!"

A couple of students perked up at that. The upperclassmen knew that most of the time the announcements were boring and pretty useless. But if something was dubbed "good news", then maybe it was worthy of their ears.

"The television show, National Bandstand has selected Rydell as a representative of American high schools and will do a life broadcast from her very own gym. It's our chance to show the nation what fine, bright, clean-cut-" she paused then, as if choking on her words, "wholesome students we have here at Rydell."

Most of the second part was left unheard, mostly because kids were cheering at the prospect of being on live tv. After that, the announcements droned on, as did the classes.  
  
After what seemed like days, the lunch break was announced by the tolling of the bell. Students flooded the halls and cafeteria, scattering to the other spots to enjoys their meals.

Charlie slid into a seat at an empty table, shuffling a card deck. It was her job to get to the table first and save seats for the rest of the Angels. Sure enough, Ruby and Jo made their way over, lunch trays in hand. They waved at Charlie and made faces, giggling as they sat down.

"Hey guys," Charlie said with a smirk, "Didja get a look at Dean this morning?" Charlie was gay and good friends with Dean, as were the rest of the Angels, but she loved to tease the other girls about him. She knew he was the heartthrob of the school and also the heartbreaker. Even though she was into girls, she thought Dean was attractive, the same way you might look at a pair of shoes and admit they're nice.

"Yeah," Ruby teased, turning her attention to Jo, "He's looking pretty good this year, eh?"

Jo rolled her eyes, "Come on guys, it was one little crush."

"Little?" Ruby scoffed, "It was an entire year, Joanna."

"Yeah, well," Jo huffed, "It was an entire year of ninth grade. So it doesn't matter." She seemed angry, but she laughed, used to the teasing. Her mom and Dean's family had been close since forever, so they had known each other since they were kids. They often fought, but Sam, Dean, and Jo were practically inseparable. When Jo first came to Rydell, she saw Dean in a whole new light and hardcore crushed on him for the entirety of ninth year. Whether he noticed and just didn't say anything or was oblivious, she had no idea. Either way, it hadn't worked out but it hadn't effected their relationship in the least.

Before further conversation could continue, Anna came up to the table with a fidgety Castiel in tow.

"Hey guys!" She said excitedly, taking a seat on the same side as Charlie letting Cas slide in between them. The girls all greeted her and sent questioning looks. "This is my cousin, Castiel," She explained once they were seated, "Cas, these are my friends; That's Charlie, Jo, and Ruby." Each girl waved and smiled when introduced.

Castiel smiled, "You guys can call me Cas, it's what my friends call me." Cas felt a twinge of recognition in the back of his head at the names. He felt like he had heard them before, but he'd never met any of them. He certainly didn't have any friends back home with those names. He couldn't quite figure it out, and it was driving him mad.

"So, Cas," Charlie prompted, "What year are you in?"

"I'm in my senior year," He answered, "Same as you guys."

Jo leaned over, "Why transfer?"

Cas shrugged, "I'm from Canada. My dad owns a company and wanted to move the base back to his hometown with his family so he'd have support. So here I am."

Charlie frowned, "Don't you miss your friends."

Castiel smiled, "Course I do! But I'll keep in contact with them, and we'll visit during Christmas break to see my mom's side of the family. So I'll get to see my friends then."

"Sounds fun!" Charlie smiled, "I moved from Alaska when I was really young, so I didn't have a whole lot of friends to worry about."

"You were lucky then." Then Castiel turned back to his lunch.

Suddenly Jo pointed at Charlie, "Are those new glasses?"

Charlie looked up, and pushed the bedazzled, fake tortoise-shell* glasses further up her nose, "Yup. I got them for school. Think they make me look smarter?"

"Nah," Ruby piped up, "You can still see your face!"

Charlie stuck out her tongue then took a bite out of her apple. It was funny because Charlie was easily the smartest out of all of them. She just bought the glasses to try out a new look, which she was always doing.

Suddenly a high pitched squeal pierced the lunch break. The girls all groaned and Ruby whispered to Castiel "Here comes the bad seed."

Before Cas could ask what she meant, a bright, short, blonde girl with a blue dress and her hair pulled back in a pony tail bounded over.

"Heya, girls!" She screeched.

There was a chorus of polite greeting from the table.

"Don't you just love the first day of school?" She was practically bouncing up and down with excitement, "It's simply the best!"

"Biggest thrill of my life," Ruby said sarcastically. Her sunglasses covered her eyes, but her smile was polite. The girl didn't seem to realize that she was being sarcastic.

"Oh! You'll never guess what happened!"

"Do tell us," Ruby's smile was a little more crooked.

"The nominees for Vice President are out, and I'm one of them!" She squealed again.

"Best of luck to you" Chorused around the table. The girl smiled then gasped loudly when she noticed Cas. She squeezed between him and Anna. She sat down, then jumped up, sitting on something hard. She stood up and picked up a half-eaten apple.

"Sorry!" Charlie said with a smile, taking it from her and taking a bite, just to be gross. She plodded over to Jo and Ruby, watching the exchange.

"You must think me such a clod for not introducing myself!" The girl leaned closer, "I'm Becky Simcox!"

Cas smiled, "I'm Cas."

"Oh, that's a nice name. Say!" Suddenly she clapped her hands, "You know what? You should join the cheer team! It'll be fun and we can be life-long friends and we need at least one guy, even though I've been trying to get Sam to join for years!"

"I think that'd be fun," Cas answered honestly, "I was on the cheer team at my old school."

But something of far more significance had climbed into Castiel's brain. When Becky had mentioned Sam, puzzle pieces suddenly seemed to click into place. This was the same Becky that he and Sam had talked about once. According to Sam, she was his age and obsessed with him. It was no secret that she had a major crush on him, considering she constantly pestered him and sometimes even entered stalker-ish activities. She had once followed him home to find out where he lived and nearly got lost on the way back. Sam had tried to give her hints that he was not into her, but she just wouldn't take no as an answer. Apparently, the rest of the Hunters liked to mess with her and pull petty pranks; like putting a rubber spider in her purse, flicking up her skirts when she wasn't looking, pulling her ponytail and then ducking away as if they couldn't possibility have done it.

So if this was the same Becky, then that meant that the Jo sitting across from him was Jo The Childhood Friend, Charlie was Charlie The Nerdy Redhead, Ruby was Ruby The Demon, and his own cousin was Anna The Badass Redhead. Dean had had his suspicions that he was at the same school that Dean was, but now he was sure.

He shoved that thought away to deal with later and continued his conversation with Becky. As he was talking, Anna slid down to convene with the rest of the Angels at the other end of the table.

"So how're you guys liking Cas?" She asked, "Think we could make him an Angel?"

The girls glanced at Cas. Ruby smirked, "I dunno. He looks to pure to be an Angel, almost like an actual angel."

Meanwhile, across campus at the football bleachers, the Hunters all hung out near the top left, joking and eating. They watched in amusement at the half-hearted football team. One of the more popular but clumsy players, Adam, stumbled and got his own foot caught in his helmet.

"Looks like you've got a real kicker there, Adam!" Dean called out. Adam only glared up at him and stumbled around some more. The team's water boy Alfie, skittered around him, trying to help but also trying to avoid getting kicked in the face, it was entertaining, to say the least. The Hunters laughed and Sam shot a water gun at them, for no reason. He had picked it up over the summer and refused to put it down, driving Dean crazy with constant and random squirts of water aimed at him.

They sat back down again, enjoying their lunch. Suddenly Kevin smacked Sam's shoulder, earning the attention of the group. "Look," He said with mirth.

He pointed further down the bleachers, where two girls sat talking with their legs up on the seat in from of them. On the level where their feet would normally go, Gabriel had somehow slid under them unnoticed, getting a great view of their underwear.

The guys laughed and Benny whistled a quick note. The girls snapped their heads over at them, then noticed Gabriel. He grinned up at them. They huffed and went to sit further away.

Gabriel got up and walked back over to the group, where he was expertly shot in the eye he Sam, "You're a sick man, Gabe. Don't'cha have a girlfriend?"

Gabe laughed, sitting down and rubbing his eye, "Yeah I do, but a peek or two never hurt anybody." The group laughed. Gabriel smirked up at Dean, who was standing up and leaning on the rails, "Hey. I wanna hear what Dean did at the beach!"

_Red flag, red flag, red flag!_ Dean's mind screamed. He knew this conversation was coming, but he was in no way prepared for it. It wasn't until the night after Cas left that Dean really started to panic. His solution: shove it off to the side for later. Well, later was here and he had no idea what to say. Sam knew, of course. Cas had come over a couple of times over the summer for dinner and movies and sleepovers and stuff under the pretence of a "friend" but Sam had figured out pretty quick that they were much more. Well, he had been suspicious as soon as Dean brought Cas through the door, but his suspicions were confirmed when he walked in on them making out in Dean's room. Sam had been cool with it, and hopefully learned his lesson about not knocking. He even promised not to say anything to their dad. In fact, without his help, Dean was sure that their dad would've found them out.

He knew his friends would be accepting, but there were a lot of factors. Maybe they wouldn't get their heads around the idea of bisexual; maybe they thought you liked one gender or another, not both. Dean had thought that himself, mostly because of his dad, but Cas had spent an entire day naming every type of sexuality there was. Dean had had no idea how many there had been.

Not to mention his reputation. He was known as a heartbreaker and a lady-killer. He wasn't entirely proud of it, but there were worse things to be. He liked the attention girls gave him and he certainly enjoyed their time too. If he came out about his sexuality, then that could be ruined. Dean was still head over heels for Cas, but attention was nice when your boyfriend was in another country.

The biggest problem by far was his dad. John Winchester was by every definition homophobic. He was decent enough to Charlie, but he scowled when she wasn't looking and always seemed to do really passive aggressive things like give her a smaller portion than everyone else if he served dinner, burned her hotdog, gave her warm pop, stuff like that. He was never rude to her, but everyone knew that John didn't like her. If he couldn't handle one of his sons' friends being gay, how would he react to his oldest son and 'heir to the family business' being bi, in a secret relationship with another dude? Dean was not ready to face that wrath.

A heartbeat had hardly passed by the time he finished panicking/thinking, "It was nothin." Oh, that one hurt. Cas certainly wasn't nothing, but he just wanted out of the conversation.

"Sure, nothing. Right, brother?" Benny said skeptically.

"Come on, Deano!" Gabriel stood up and leaned closer to Dean, "You got in her drawers right? Come on, tell us!"

In the cafeteria, Castiel was facing a similar torture.

"What did you do this summer, Cas?" Charlie asked, reclaiming her seat as Anna followed suite.

"Oh," Cas said, "I spent most of it at the beach. Met a boy there."

He waited for a reaction, but Charlie only leaned forward excitedly, "You're gay?"

Cas nodded, "Yes," he said slowly.

Charlie grinned, "So am I!"

Cas was about to reply to her excitement before Ruby scoffed. "Why would you drag your ass to the beach every day for some guy."

Cas shrugged innocently, "He was kinda special." Oh, that was an understatement. Dean had been the highlight of his year, maybe even his life. He was exciting and funny and sweet and adventurous and a million other great things that made Cas sure that if they had more time, he could grown to love the beautiful, impossibly green eyes and the boy they were attached to.

Ruby snorted, "Ain't no such thing."

Cas smiled wistfully, "He was really romantic, I thought." There. Now that he knew Dean went to Rydell, he wouldn't say anything they did sexually. That way, he could say it was Dean and not worry about his 'secret identity' getting revealed. He could simply imply that Dean had done everything as a friend and Cas took it one step further. He and a feeling that Dean hadn't said anything to his friends and didn't plan on it any time soon. Castiel understood, since he had been in the same boat once. Coming out was never easy, especially when you're in senior year of high school and was raised by a homophobic widower. Dean would come out when he was ready, and until then, Castiel would try his best to play Dean off as straight. _This might be harder than I thought,_ He thought.

"Everything about it! Come on man!" Kevin now joined the bandwagon. Dean cast a glance at Sam, who was standing off to the side, surveying. It was obvious that he was contemplating whether to come to Dean's aid and possibly make the situation worse or just stay out of the way and let Dean handle it on his own. Dean smiled at him and decided on a plan. If he used non-gender specific pronouns, then he wouldn't technically be lying about Cas. He just wouldn't use a name, because he knew Cas was Gabe's cousin (thankfully he had been with Kali all summer so he hadn't noticed anything).

"Come on," Dean said with a smirk, "You don't wanna hear all the horny details!"

This, as expected, only excited the boys. They jumped to their feet, grinning. They chorused "Are you kidding me?"

Dean laughed and threw his hands up in surrender, "Alright, alright! I'll tell ya!" He took a breath, "Man, summer lovin- had me a blast!"

Cas smiled, "Summer loving. It happened so fast."

"I met someone, crazy for me!" Dean was trying very hard to tread carefully....

"Met a boy, cute as can be!" The girls all leaned forward. Anna was especially eager, since Cas didn't often use the word "cute" to describe boys.

"Summer days, they drifted away," Dean shrugged, "But woah, those summer nights!" He was pretty proud at the impressed faces of his friends.

"Well!" They laughed, "Tell me more!" They were almost in sync, that's how excited they were. Even Sam was starting to join in on the fun.

"Didja get very far?" Benny wiggled his eyebrows and Dean laughed.

"Tell us more!" Anne said excitedly.

"Yeah, " Jo smirked, "Like does he have a car?"

"So I swam by there," Dean was explaining how they met, "I was saving some girl-"

"But he was drowning, so I jumped into save him!" Castiel laughed.

"Saved her life, but I nearly drowned!"

"He was showing off, splashing around."

"Summer sun," Dean's smile turned wistful, "Something's begun." Now he was telling a straight up story of how he and a mystery 'girl' met.

"But, oh, those summer nights." The girls perked up and even Becky (who was still there for some reason) joined in.

"Tell us more!" They demanded.

Becky leaned in closer, her eyes wild, "Was it love at first sight?"

"Tell us more!" The Hunters chanted.

Gabriel leaned an elbow on Dean's shoulder, "Did she put up a fight?" Dean just laughed and shrugged him off.

"We went bowling in the arcade," He admitted. A cheesy sort of spot, but it had been pretty fun. Dean was pretty great at bowling, but Castiel had dominated.

"We went on walks," Cas told the girls, getting up to get a drink, "Drank lemonade."

"We made out, under the dock!" Dean smirked, the guys almost falling down laughing. Except for Sam, he rolled his eyes and pretended to gag.

"Stayed out until twelve o'clock," Cas said around his straw, sitting back down, the girls following and clinging into every word.

"Summer thing, way more than a fling," _That was a little dangerous_ , His mind warned. "But, woah, those summer nights!" _Good save._

"Tell me more!" Kevin said with a bright smile, "But ya don't have to brag!"

"Tell me more!" Charlie was grinning ear to ear.

"Cuz he sounds like a drag," Ruby drawled, lying sideways on the bench, completely uninterested.

Cas rolled his eyes, "He was friendly, even held my hand."

"We got friendly down in the sand!" Dean was having way too much fun with this. He felt almost like some spy, tricking people into think Cas was a chick. Well, not technically, because he never specified Cas's gender nor did he mention the name. So he totally wasn't lying.

"He was sweet," Cas admitted, "Halfway nineteen."

"Well they were good, if ya know what I mean!" Benny, Kevin, and Gabriel all seemed thoroughly impressed with Dean's summer love. He wasn't making it up or exaggerating either; despite it being his first experience with a dude, Dean had been eager to try new stuff and Castiel had happily, albeit carefully and far too slowly, obliged.

"Summer heat, two people meet," Cas continued, "But ha, those summer nights."

"Tell me more!" Chorused once again.

Charlie tapped him on the shoulder and wiggled her eyebrows, "How much dough did he spend?"

"Tell me more!" Gabriel begged again, "Can she get me a friend?" Benny shoved Gabriel down with a disapproving shake of his head and Sam squirted him in the ear. Gabe just shrugged. Dean laughed.

"It turned colder, and it sorta ends," Cas said sadly. Of course, Dean had promised that it was only the beginning, but something had definitely changed.

"But I knew we'd be way more than friends," Dean said, feeling a little down. After everything, he and Cas could never just stay 'friends'. He wasn't sure if he could handle that.

"Then we made our end of summer vow," Cas was hardly even present, thinking of sun setting on the waves and words ghosted across lips.

"Wonder what they're doing now..." This was more to himself than those around him. Dean was genuinely curious. He hadn't heard anything from Cas since they had said goodbye. That was expected, since mail travelling from Canada to California was long.

Unknowingly, the both said the same words at the same time; "Summer dreams, ripped at the seams. But we'll always have those summer nights!"

Dean laughed with the Hunters, Sam making faces at him in mock disgust. Castiel was laughing with the girls, wondering just how far Dean was from him.

As they headed out for lunch, the girls hounded Castiel for more information.

"He sounds cool!" Charlie grinned.

Cas smiled, "Yeah, he was. I'm crazy about him, but I'm not sure if he feels the same way." Oh, that was a lie. He knew exactly how Dean felt. Knew it the second Dean had him pinned in the cool sand under the boardwalk, lit by starlight.

"Well," Ruby said disapprovingly, "True love and he didn't lay a hand on you? Sounds like a creep to me."

Castiel really wanted to correct Ruby and tell her exactly how much Dean had touched him (which had been a lot), but instead he simply said, "Well he wasn't! He was a gentleman." This was true, to an extent.

"So," Anna asked, clinging on to Cas's arm, "What's his name?"

The girls leaned in. Moment of truth. "Dean. Dean Winchester."

The girls leaned back, all slightly shocked and seemingly sympathetic. From their expressions, Cas guessed he had done his job well.

"Well," Ruby snapped her gum, "Maybe if you're lucky and believe in miracles, your Prince Charming will show up. Somewhere unexpected." Then she nodded at Jo and Charlie, "Come, we should get to class. You're on our way, right Jo?" Then the three girls waved and walked off to their classes.

Cas looked at Anna, "You really think so?" If he had had any shred of doubt whether Dean went to Rydell, it was gone now.

"Yeah, sure," Anna said in a way that was obvious she was trying to change topics, "You know, we really should get to class."

*They're better known as "hipster glasses" but I'm trying to use some 1960s lingo and it wasn't exactly the same style, but it's the same idea.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello yes if you've made it this far, thanks. Just to let ya know, the plot is going to be breaking off very soon. Like, next chapter soon. Also, the cafeteria scene? A pain in the ass. I really wanted to create that moment again with these characters because I thought it would be fun. Of course, it will always be better seen better than read, but I've got limited resources. Trust me, if I could turn this into a play, I fucking would. No doubt.
> 
> Anyways, thanks for making it this far. Read on, I guess?


	3. Pep Rallies and Meet Ups

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The first week at Rydell has finally come to an end with the annual pep rally. Cas is on the team and Dean is in the back. They'll have to find one another sooner, right?

  
The back field of Rydell high was filled with the cheers and shouts of students, ringed by parked cars, the marching band circulating the perimeter of the field before making a circle in the middle, leaving an opening for the cheerleaders to come through and do their bit. There was a bonfire just slightly taller than the tallest teacher a few hundred feet in front of the stage. It lit the night and brightened the mood.

As a single note was played, the girls and Castiel streamed forward, shouting encouragingly. The entire team, including Cas, had Pom-Poms. He felt a twinge of embarrassment, being out in front of the whole school on parade. But he was relatively confident in his abilities.

Soon they took up their positions. Cas and a bigger girl set up for a stunt, hefting Becky into a ready position while the rest of the girls chanted "Do the splits, give a yell, show some spirit for old Rydell! Way to go, red and white! Go Rydell, fight fight fight!" Then they burst into cheers as Castiel and the other girl threw Becky into the air and catching her. The crowd exploded into appreciative cheers and Cas could see the Angels among the crowd, cheering him on.

Then the marching band started up again and the cheerleaders took their seats on a bench by the makeshift stage erected in the middle of the field. The football team stormed in, yelling and waving their helmets. Castiel had to bite his tongue from laughing. They looked a little ridiculous and barbaric, but it was all in the name of spirit and fun. Still, they looked a little funny, just stomping around and yelling.

They too took their seats, this time on a bench opposite the cheerleaders.

Naomi stood up from her spot on the stage and approached the mic, "And now," She announced into it, "I present to you the man of the hour, the coach we're depending on to pull us out of our seven season streak of second place, our very own Coach Singer!"

The man stood up and Castiel remembered him from his first day of school. He hadn't taken gym, so he hadn't had a chance to talk to the coach, but he did nod and smile at him in the hallways.

The coach stepped up to the mic and raised a fist, "Who's the best?"

"Rydell!" The crowd screamed back.

Coach Singer grinned, "Give em hell, Rydell!" The crowd screamed back, cheering and shouting. The coach gestured to make the crowd quieter in order to continue his speech, "I just wanna tell you students that this year, it's gonna be a banner year. Because these idjits, boys, I mean, are primed. And I mean that 'cuz I did the priming. This team ain't made of princesses, it's made of warriors! Warriors honed to a razor-sharp edge! And students, we're not just goin' out there to win, we're goin' for the glory. When we get out there, we're gonna rip em, and tear em...."

While Coach Singer made his speech, Castiel was trying to listen to what he said, because it was quite entertaining. He was passionate about football, and bursting at the seams with sarcasm. Cas had never met Bobby before, but during the summer Dean had talked about him quite a bit. He acted as an uncle of sorts to the brothers, and both Sam and Dean spoke very highly of him. From what little Cas could gather about him, he figured that he liked Bobby too.

However, during his speech, most of the football players were making faces and jeering at the cheerleaders. Some flirted back and others huffed and looked away. They were making comments at Cas as well, but he elected to ignore them. Besides, what was the worst they could do verbally? Call him gay?

"...And ring that victory bell!" Coach Singer gestured at a bell that hung on a pole and the crowd went wild again. Then the coach stepped back from the mic, signalling the end of his speech and for the marching band to start up again. Cas stood up with the rest of the cheerleaders to continue their dance, this time around the fire. The energy was high and Castiel felt good, excited. A little voice in the back of his mind wondered if Dean was somewhere in the crowd, watching, and if he had noticed or even recognized Castiel. He felt himself get a little more excited at the idea.

Meanwhile, Gabriel, Kevin, and Benny were hanging out by the cars, just on the edge, away from the crowd.

"Hey, hey," Gabe teased, "Check this out," Then he started some weird dance that included him turning around and shaking his behind at the other two, chanting, "Do a split, give a yell, shake a tit for old Rydell!" Then he turned around and grinned. Kevin snorted and Benny shook his head, grinning.

"You are one sick man," Benny said.

"So I'm told," Gabe snarked back.

"Say," Kevin said, "Didn't you mention something about your cousin Castiel joining the cheerleaders?"

Gabe shrugged, "Yeah. Honestly, I keep thinking the guy can't get any gayer, but he always proves me wrong."

Benny frowned, "He's gay?"

Gabe narrowed his eyes, "Yeah. What's it to you?"

Benny shrugged nonchalantly and leaned against his car, "Nothin'. Just checkin'."

Before Gabe could pry, the familiar sound of a Chevy engine reached their ears. The three boys turned toward the sound of it and saw Dean in his precious Baby, Sam riding shotgun. They pulled up and parked the car, climbing out of their seats and leaning on the hood.

Benny whistled, "So this is what you've done to her, huh? I gotta say, brother, I'm impressed."

Dean grinned, "Yup," He slapped the hood proudly, "When I wasn't at the beach, I was with this beauty. Sure fixed her up."

"That you did," Kevin agreed, "You gonna race her in Thunder Road?"

Dean shrugged, "Sure, why not? She can take it, and I can drive it."

"Really, Dean?" Sam asked, "All summer you haven't let me drive the car, and yet you're willing to race her?"

Dean reached over and ruffled Sam's hair. Sam swatted Dean's hand away, "Of course, because I'm the one behind the wheel."

The Hunters laughed and joked until Kevin poked Benny in the arm, "Hey, look," He pointed at a black car driving through the empty lot across the street, flames painted along its sides. Driving it was none other than Lucifer, the asshole cousin of Anna, Gabe, and Cas. Riding with him were two women.

"What're the Demons doin' here?" Benny snarled, "This ain't their territory."

"Maybe they're looking for a rumble," Sam said almost hopefully. Almost on instinct, each Hunter pulled out their switch blade. Expect for Gabe; he had somehow stolen Sam's water gun and held it as if it were a real weapon.

"No," Dean said, "Not tonight...." He trailed off, silently daring Lucifer to prove him wrong.

But the guy hadn't developed any means of telepathy, so he continued driving and flashed the Hunters the finger before speeding off, his mufflers roaring.

Meanwhile, the crowd had continued to get excited and Coach Singer approached the mic again, "Let's go get em!" Then the crowd surged off towards the football field. Cas stayed behind, since he and the cheer team had agreed that he not show up for the first away games, just in case things got messy.

Cas ran his fingers through his hair and tried to spot the Angels in the quickly thinning crowd. A couple people had chosen to stay behind; only going to the pep rally and not the actual game. Cas noticed Anna coming up to him and waved, meeting her halfway and walking to where the other Angels sat waiting by Ruby's car.

"You did great, Cassie!" Anna told him.

Cas nodded, "Thank you. I was a little rusty, but I think I'm getting better at it."

"Yeah," Charlie said, "That was pretty cool, the way you threw that girl."

Cas shrugged. He opened his mouth to say something else but noticed the looks on the girls' faces, "What?" He asked.

Ruby smirked, "C'mon, we got a surprise for ya." Then she got up off of the hood of her car and started walking the perimeter of the ring of cars. The others followed suit.

As they walked, Cas's heart pounded in his chest. It had been a week and he hadn't seen Dean once. Well, maybe a few glimpses, but he was never sure if it was him or not. All week, there had been that terrible what if at the back of his head, warning that it was too good to be true. The Angels hadn't mentioned Dean and Cas had been too worried to ask; what if he jeopardized Dean? That wouldn't be fair to him, so best to stay in the dark, although it was torture.

As they walked, the girls started fussing with Cas's uniform and hair. He tried very hard not to shoo them away because he knew they meant well. But the more they fussed, the louder his heartbeat got. Finally they reached a spot far away from the pep rally. There was a group of guys wearing leather jackets around a very familiar black car. Castiel caught snippets of voices he recognized; Gabriel, Sam, Dean.

Before he could get a proper look, he was shoved behind the girls so he couldn't see anything and couldn't be seen either, "Hey, Deano," Ruby teased, "We got something for ya."

Dean looked up and smirked, sliding off of the hood, "Oh yeah?"

Ruby's smirk made Dean waiver a little bit, "Yeah." Before he could wonder anymore, a body was shoved in front of him, previously hidden by the other Angels. It stumbled and then caught itself, standing up to meet Dean's eyes with impossibly blue ones.

"Cas?"

Cas smiled, "Hello, Dean."

"Wha, but, how?" Dean stuttered, totally losing his composure and just grinning. Castiel's chest swelled with happiness. If there had ever been a doubt in his mind that Dean wouldn't be happy to see him, it was gone.

"My father moved his company's base," Cas explained happily, "So now I live here."

"Cas," Dean stepped forward and started to lift his arm, "That's awesome, I-"

Dean was cut off by a sharp clearing of a throat, and turned behind him. Cas saw Sam trying to be as subtle as possible while trying to convey a message. Dean turned back to Cas and lifted his arm, which had been going for Cas's hand, to his shoulder.

"I'm glad to see ya, buddy."

_Ouch_ , A part of him said, _Buddy? Were you just friend-zoned? B_ y Dea _n?_

_Shut up_ , He thought back. He looked closer at Dean and saw the desperation in those beautiful green eyes. He was trying so hard to tell him what was going on, but he couldn't say anything. Not in front of their friends.

"Yeah," Cas smiled and tried to convey that he understood, "Me too."

Dean's shoulders relaxed a little bit, but he looked awfully guilty.

Cas looked around Dean and found his brother, "Hello, Sam."

Sam waved, "Hi Cas. How ya been?"

"Good."

"Wait, wait, wait," Gabriel stepped up, making a time-out symbol with his hands, "How do you guys know my cousin?"

"I came down over the summer," Cas said, "You know that. When Anna was with her friends and you were with Kali, I was at the beach." Then he looked at Dean, leaving how much he wanted to go into details to him.

"But I thought you spent the summer at the beach with some babe, Deano," Gabe said, turning to Dean, "So how didja find Cassie?"

Dean shrugged, "I did spend the summer with a babe," He smirked and his eyes flicked to Castiel momentarily, "But Sam and I hung out with Cas a little bit too."

Gabe narrowed his eyes at Dean, obviously sensing something off. Dean prayed to whatever was out there that Gabriel, of all people, hadn't picked up on his slight half-truth.

"Seems fair," Gabriel finally decided with a shrug. Then he winked at Cas.

"So," Dean said awkwardly.

Cas took a step back, "It was nice seeing you again, Dean."

"Yeah, you too, Cas."

Both of them wanted to say a lot more than a half-hearted parting, but there wasn't much they could say, not in front of their friends  
  
Cas nodded once, "Goodbye, Dean," Turned, and walked away. The other Angels followed, each giving Dean a different look. Anna looked furious, Jo was disappointed, Charlie looked at him with sympathy, and Ruby smirked before stalking off.

Dean watched Cas go, watched him turn his head just slightly, and caught his eye.

Dean had been in a panic the entire conversation. When Cas had been shoved forward, he had been filled with pure joy. To say he was happy to see Cas was an understatement. Dean had almost forgotten that he hadn't told his friends about Cas being a guy or anything about their relationship other than the loose details of their sex. That is, until Sam had kindly coughed and caught Dean's attention, reminding him exactly what his predicament was.

Dean was sure that his friends would accept him, but there were doubts ebbing at his confidence, holding him back. What if he was wrong? What if they didn't like him? What if they kicked him, their leader, out of the gang? The reasons were silly, but terrifying nonetheless. Dean had in no way been prepared to have Cas thrown into the mess. He felt terrible about not telling his friends, and even worse for putting Castiel in a position where he might have to lie to his friends and family. Then Dean started to panic even more.

What exactly had Cas said? If Dean was right, then Cas would have been at Rydell since Monday, which meant he had known the Angels since then, if not longer. Dean knew that Cas was open about his sexuality and had no problems with it. He would have even less, being friends with Charlie. So how much had Cas revealed? How had he played it off? Then Dean thought back to Monday's lunch hour and his confession of a steamy romance with an unnamed, non-gendered person. If he told the Hunters about him and Cas, would he be ready for the realization to sink in? They would find out pretty quick that Cas had been Dean's mystery "babe". Would the fact that he had slept with another man change their opinions of him?

_Okay, calm down,_ He told himself, _You can figure that out later. But right now, you owe Castiel an apology and an explanation, mister._

Dean stepped forward to follow the girls and heard Benny call his name, "You comin'?" Dean glanced back and saw the guys loaded in his car and in Benny's.

"Yeah," He called back, "Just gotta grab something. You go on ahead, I'll catch up."

The guys shrugged and Sam and Kevin hopped into Benny's topless car and drove off. Dean jogged after the girls and caught up to them quickly.

"Hey," He said, catching the sleeve of Cas's uniform. Cas raised an eyebrow and smirked. Dean dropped his hand and looked off to the side, "Sorry about earlier, but, uh," He noticed the Angels leaning in to his conversation. He steeled himself and leaned closer to Cas, whispering so that the others wouldn't hear, "Meet me under the bleachers when you can. You know where they are, right?"

Cas nodded and Dean pulled back, grinning. Then he clapped him on the shoulder and jogged away in the direction of the bleachers.

"What was that?" Anna asked, glaring at Dean's silhouette.

Cas shrugged, trying to hide his smile, "He just wanted to talk."

Anna rolled her eyes and turned to walk back to the car, "Whatever. You can do a lot better than him, Cassie."

But I don't want to, Cas wanted to say. Instead, he nodded his head, "I need to change, I'll meet up with you guys soon."

Before Anna could protest, Cas was already practically running towards the still open change rooms. He was very anxious as he got changed as quickly as he could. He wondered just what Dean wanted to talk about. His mind went in many directions, not all of them positive.

_Maybe he wants to break it off_? He thought, _Tell me that he hadn't expected it to get this far and part as friends? Unlikely, but plausible. What if he just wants to apologize, and things can be normal again? What of he wants to stop what we're doing, just for a while, so he can figure things out? What if he tells me that he had a plan, and I ruined it? Oh gosh, what if I did ruin it? What would his friends think? Would Dean be mad at me? Probably._

To say Cas was nervous when he stumbled towards the bleachers with his overnight bag slung over his shoulders was an understatement. He had been so focused on the thought of seeing Dean again that he hadn't really thought of the following consequences. Dean had a life at Rydell, and Cas could be a danger to that. He knew first hand how tough high school was.

When he finally reached the bleachers, he started to panic. It was dark and he couldn't see Dean. He was facing the underneath of the bleachers, the benches stacked high in front of him. Since it was an away game, the field was dark and empty, lit only by moonlight.

Cas was about to turn around and leave when he noticed a silhouette of a man, outlined by the moon's rays shining down through the gaps in the seats. Tentatively, he called out, "Dean?"

The figure, which had been leaning against a support beam, turned to face him, "Yeah it's me. That you, Cas?"

Castiel sighed in relief, "Yeah, it's me," Before heading towards Dean. As he got closer, his eyes adjusted and he could see that Dean was grinning like a child. It made his stomach do a funny little dance.

As Cas entered the shadows of the bleachers, Dean pulled him in for a hug. Castiel was a little surprised, but quickly returned it and dropped his bag by their feet. It was nice just to hold Dean, with no one looking, judging, the opinions nothing but empty air.

Then Dean pulled back and his smile turned sad. He didn't step away from Cas, he still had his arms wrapped around his back, "Listen, Cas," He said, nibbling at his lip, "I'm sorry. About earlier. I just haven't told my friends yet and I didn't expect you to show up and I feel terrible."

"Dean," Cas said softly, but either Dean didn't hear him or was too busy rambling on about how sorry he was to comprehend.

"And I know it was kind of a dick move, but I didn't have much of a choice. That's not how I want to come out, yknow?"

"Dean," He said a little more forcefully.

"But damn, Cas, I like you. I mean, really like you, and I didn't want to throw you into this mess and I hadn't thought I'd be seeing you for a while so I thought I'd have more time but I'm happy you're here Cas I'm just worried that we might not be able to be together an-"

" _Dean_ ," Cas demanded, lifting his hands to cup Dean's face and force the other to look at him, "It's okay, I get it. I was in the same position once too, you know."

Dean sighed and his shoulders relaxed, his hands loosening on Castiel's back, "Thanks Cas. By the way, what, uh, _exactly_ did you tell the girls?" Dean was starting to get worried again.

Cas felt confident in his answer, "I played it off as if we had become friends and I developed a crush on you, never told you, and you didn't take it any further. I didn't really lie, though." Dean sighed in relief. Cas furrowed his brow, "Why? What did you tell your friends?"

"Oh," It was hard to tell in the dark, but if Castiel had to guess, then he would say that Dean was blushing, "I, uh, kind of told them we slept together."

" _What_?"

Dean smiled sheepishly, "Sorry?"

"No, it's fine," Cas stammered, "I'm not mad, just...surprised. How did you pull that off?"

"Well," Dean said averting Castiel's eyes, "I didn't lie either, but if didn't really say a name or specific a gender. So I didn't lie, I just didn't tell them the whole truth."

Cas sighed, "I like you too, you know," He said, "A lot. And if you need time to figure it out with your friends, that's fine. If we really need to, you can," Cas took a breath, "Wecanbreakitoffifyouwantto," He said in one breath.

Dean looked shocked, "What?" Cas looked away, not eager to repeat it a slower pace. His hands dropped from Dean's face down to his shoulders.

"I said, if we need to, we can-"

"No, no," Dean interrupted, grabbing Castiel's face and pulling the same move he had on Dean not five minutes before, "I heard you the first time, but what?"

Cas shrugged, averting Dean's green eyes, "You need time to figure this out, I understand. And doing that while in a relationship isn't easy, so it's best if we break it off, I guess." Then he looked Dean square in the eye, "But that doesn't mean that we'll see other people."

Dean laughed, "You always were the possessive one," Then his tone turned more to comfort, "Cas, I don't want to end this. Do you?" He asked the last part slowly, afraid of the answer.

"No!" Cas almost shouted. He cleared his throat and repeated softer, "No, no. God, no."

Dean smiled, "So we won't end it, okay? We just gotta.... Lie low."

Cas frowned, "Lie low?"

"Yeah," Dean said, tracing little circles on Cas's jaw line with his thumb, "No PDA and stuff like that, just until I figure this out."

Cas nodded. He was a little disappointed that he wasn't able to be around Dean like they had at the beach. They hadn't been obnoxious about their relationship, but Dean had been confident that no one he knew would be there to see them. And if they spotted a friendly neighbour, they sprung to a friendly distance until they left. So, they had been pretty open about it all. Holding hands, kissing, even getting dangerously close to indecent before Cas had to pull away and Dean dragged them somewhere more private. Like Dean had said, he always was the possesive one, just a little, and he kind of looked forward to seeing the girls' faces at school when they found out that Dean Winchester was dating a guy.

"But," Dean started, pulling Castiel's face slowly closer, "That doesn't mean we can't do this."

And before Cas could ask what he meant, Dean's lips were on his.

It was almost instinct when he kissed back, wrapping his arms around Dean's neck and leaning closer, trying to close whatever distance there was between them.

Both had hardly forgotten how good the other felt. The kiss was soft, eager, and a little desperate as they both tried to hold on to the warm memories of summer. That kiss, hidden away in the shadows of the bleachers, reminded them both of kisses stolen under the boardwalk, in the Impala, stargazing, in a darkened bedroom with the curtains drawn. There was that extra excitement of hiding that made it feel that much better, giving them an extra thrill.

Dean had very much missed Cas's kisses. His quick, chaste ones. His soft, loving ones. His rough, desperate ones. No matter the setting, no matter the mood, Castiel was undeniably a great kisser. He was a bit of a biter and usually left Dean's lips slightly swollen and noticeably redder. Dean has a feeling that this time was no different, and he was probably going to hear about it from the guys. At the time, Dean didn't care, which was probably a dangerous move. But he was caught up in the kiss, trying to make up for his earlier screw up, and the many to come because of his shyness to come out of the damn closet.

Castiel had missed Dean's kisses more than he could ever let on. He had missed his always so soft kisses, no matter the situation. It was no denying that Dean was a great kisser, and even a quick peck could leave him as a pile of goo. His lips were soft and submissive, the exact opposite of what he appeared to be. He had a wonderful habit of smiling when he kissed, and Cas loved the way he looked with his kiss-swollen lips.

Cas raised his hands just a little bit and started playing with the hairs at the nape of Dean's neck.

"C'mon man, you're killing me," He moaned against his lips. Dean didn't do anything to stop him though. In fact, he turned them so that he was pushing Cas up against a pole and leaned into him.

Cas wanted nothing but more, more, more, but, "Dean," He groaned, "We gotta stop."

"Why?" He complained, moving down to press his lips to Cas's pulse on his neck, sending shivers throughout his body.

"Be-because," He stuttered out, far too distracted by the boy in front of him smirking as he pulled down the collar of his woollen shirt to kiss his collarbones, "I have a sleepover I have to get to. They're, ah, they're waiting for me."

"Alright," Dean said, lifting his head from Cas's neck to meet his lips again. Castiel also recalled Dean's stubbornness about him leaving at the end of most days.

"I gotta go," He tried again, escort it was rather half-hearted.

To his relief and disappointment, Dean pulled back and sighed, "Yeah, guess you're right. The Hunters are probably waiting up on me too."

Dean took a step back to allow Cas some space. He bent down and picked up his bag, handing it to him, "Here you go," He said with a smirk, "Until next time, fair princess."

"Hey," Cas protested with a smile, taking his bag from Dean, "If anything, you're the princess."

"Yeah, yeah. So where's the sleepover?"

"Anna's," Cas replied.

Dean nodded, "Well then, the Hunters may just pay the Angels a little visit."

"Oh really?" Cas teased.

"You bet," Dean pulled him in one more time for a quick kiss. Then Cas turned and started running back, waving as he left Dean's sight.

As Dean watched his boyfriend leave, he leaned against a pole and rubbed his slightly swollen lips. Oh yeah, he was so going to hear it from the boys. And he was totally screwed.

The best part? He didn't care.

 

 

 

 

 


	5. Outings, Impalas, ans Pjs

Outings, Impalas, and Pjs.

A big perk of being Anna's cousin was that her parents didn't mind if Castiel stayed over, since they knew he wouldn't try anything. They even trusted Charlie, although they were a little wary of her at sleepovers.

Not long before midnight, the girls were still dressed and goofing around. An annoying toothpaste commercial was playing on the television set in Anna's room and Charlie was singing along obnoxiously. When she failed to reach a particularly high note, Ruby grabbed a decorative pillow from Anna's bed and threw it at Charlie's face, effectively shutting her up.

"Turn that off, will ya?" Jo complained, "I've been hearing that all summer and it's been driving me nuts!"

"Yeah, whatever. I just don't think she can sing," Ruby said, pulling out a pack of cigarettes and lighting one. Anna frowned.

"Do you mind doing that by the window?" She asked, "It stinks up my room like crazy and if my parents come up here they'll kill me!"

Ruby nodded and walked over to the window where Cas was sitting. He moved over to accommodate her and she looked him up and down, "Want a smoke?" She asked.

Castiel looked at the cigarette in her hand and then back up at her, "No thank you. I don't smoke."

Ruby shrugged, "Suit yourself."

Cas switched to Ruby's old chair, unable to stand the smell. Most of the smoke was going out the window and into the night, but it still stank terribly.

"It's okay," Charlie said, "Ruby's the only one that smokes here, except Jo. But she only does it socially."

Cas nodded, "Thanks, Charlie."

"No problem," She replied, punching his arm playfully, "Us queers have to defend each other, right?"

He smiled, "Of course."

"Well guys," Ruby declared, plopping on the bed and rummaging through her bag. She had extinguished her smoke and flushed it down the toilet, effectively destroying all evidence, "I think it's time to break out the booze!" She held up a bottle of red wine and showed it off to the girls. Then she popped off the cork and took a long drink, passing it off to Jo and then to Anna.

"Oh!" Charlie said, scrabbling for her back, "I think I have some Twinkies here!"

Jo wrinkled her nose in disgust, "Wine and Twinkies? Seriously?"

"Gimme," Charlie said stubbornly, holding out her hand for the bottle. It was passed to her and she read the label, "Aha! Right here, it says 'dessert wine', so there!" She took a swig too and then ripped open a Twinkie.

The wine was then offered to Cas. He looked at it warily.

"Oh come on," Ruby said, "It's not like we have cooties. Don't tell me you don't drink either!"

"Not entirely," Castiel admitted, "My mom's Italian so I'm used to having wine with dinner. It's just that red is not a big favourite of mine."

"Come on," Anna said encouragingly, "It's actually pretty good."

Cas shrugged and took the bottle, taking a swig. He handed it back to Charlie and nodded, "It's okay. Not the best, but it's alright."

After a while the girls decided to get changed. Cas excused himself to the bathroom to change, followed by Charlie.

"Hope you don't mind," She said, "But it's just easier for everyone if I change in here. You alright if we share?"

Cas shrugged, "I don't see why not. It's not like we're attracted to each other anyway." Castiel really didn't mind, although he was a little surprised that she suggested it. Cas was starting to like Charlie more and more; she wasn't shy about herself, but she wasn't obnoxious either. In fact, she seemed downright courteous with the other girls.

Charlie grinned, "That's the spirit."

"Hey you two," Jo teased, "No messing around in there!"

Everyone laughed and continued to change.

Charlie slipped into red loose-fitting pants and a shirt of the same style, deciding it was best to take her bra off under her clothes to avoid any awkwardness. The two may have never been attracted, but it's still a little weird to flash a guy you've only known for a week.

Castiel had taken off his clothes and was wearing loose striped pants. He was looking for his matching pyjama shirt in his bag but couldn't find it.

"Must've dropped it out there," He mumbled, standing up and scratching his head. He hoped he hadn't dropped it when he went to meet Dean, but that was unlikely. It was probably lying around in Anna's room. He turned to ask Charlie if she had seen it and noticed her staring, "What?" He asked sheepishly.

Before he could protest, Charlie grabbed Castiel's hand and dragged him out in front of the girls shirtless, declaring "Oh my gosh, Cas is ripped!"

The girls' heads snapped up from putting their day clothes away and their eyes widened when they realized that Charlie was right. Castiel didn't show it because he wore multiple layers and mostly loose-fitting shirts, but he was very well built and stronger than most guys he knew. He wasn't stronger than Dean, though. They were both exceedingly strong for their age, yet Dean had always bested Castiel in pure muscles. But that didn't change the fact that Cas was on top of Dean most of the time.

"Holy cow," Jo said, "Seriously Cas?"

Cas laughed nervously. Ruby whistled appreciatively, "Shame you're swingin' for the other team. 'Else I'd have you here and now."

Cas flushed a little bit, "Um, thank you?"

"See?" Anna said proudly, "Cassie isn't just a pretty face. He's the whole package!"

"Too bad I'm not into girls," Cas smiled, "You'll just have to survive. By the way, has anyone seen my shirt?"

While the girls looked for Castiel's missing shirt (albeit half-heartedly), the Hunters pulled up in the Impala.

Dean was a little nervous and was starting to second guess his idea. He had told his friends about the Angels' sleepover and they had been more than willing to crash it. Sam had given Dean a knowing smirk when he suggested the idea and he knew that Sam knew exactly what he was up to. Dean was always up to crashing and bugging the girls, all of their families were close anyway, but that night he just wanted to pay a visit to Castiel. He wasn't quite sure how he was going to pull it off, though. Calling Cas's name through the window was romantic in theory, but would more likely end badly for the both of them. Climbing up into Anna's room was out. He would get shoved off the roof or shot by her dad before he even managed to get a word in with Castiel. Besides, he would be hounded by the girls. He could ask one of the girls to send Cas down to him, but he doubted that too. Anna was pissed off at him, he could tell. He didn't like Ruby very much and the feeling was mutual; she would only make it Hell for him. He wasn't sure what Jo was with him, but he knew it couldn't be good, judging from her expression back at the pep rally. That left Charlie. She had always been sympathetic with Dean when he messed up his relationships. He wasn't sure whether it was because he was also a fellow nerd (Tolkien is a genius okay?) or because she may have had a hunch about his true sexuality. He had tried very hard to hide it even from himself, but he had to admit that in the past he had looked at guys the way he would look at a girl and even thought about them the way he might think about a girl. Charlie had never said anything, given no clue about her knowledge other than a few knowing smirks. But she was his best bet and would probably send Cas down with minimal dispute.  
  
As the guys drove up, the Angels stood still, listening to the familiar purr of the engine. Castiel's shirt forgotten, they all raced to the window and peeked out, seeing the black car that belonged to Dean Winchester.

"Oh they can't be here!" Anna mumbled, "If my parents see they'll flip!"

"They don't have to come in," Ruby said. She was the only one not in her pyjamas and still fully dressed, "We could go to them." Before anyone could say anything, she slipped on her shoes and climbed out the window, onto the roof, and down the flower climbing frame.

Dean saw her approach and killed the engine. The guys all climbed out except for him, he just kinda hunkered down in his seat and wondered what his next move would be. He was half tempted to climb up there and go to Cas. It's not like it would've been hard to get up there, but he knew he had to get Charlie's attention. That was the only way. But how?

"Heya, boys," Ruby purred, walking closer to talk to them. She winked at Sam, "Hey Sam."

"Hey yourself," He said with a smile, "Got any plans for this evening?"

"I do," Ruby said back, smirking, "But I'm flexible," Then she noticed Dean in the car. She leaned down and looked through the open window, "Hey there Deano, have a nice summer?"

He glared at her for a moment. Of the Angels, Ruby was by far his least favourite. She was rude and pushy and used to be a member of the Demons before she came to Rydell. It didn't help that she was having a "thing" with Sam. Neither of them cared to define it and no one else wanted to pry, but it sure as hell wasn't healthy.

"Yeah," He said cooly, "Especially since I didn't see you once. Sure heard ya though." Ruby glared at him as he slid out of his seat. He tossed the keys to Sam, the only other person aside from their father that he let drive Baby. Sam caught them easily and smiled.

"Thanks Dean."

"Yeah, yeah," Dean smirked, "Just make sure to clean her up after you're done. And treat her well!"

"Oh," Ruby said, "You don't need to worry about me."

"I wasn't," Dean replied, "I was talking about Baby."

Kevin, Gabe, and Benny laughed. Sam snorted and hastily turned it into a cough. Ruby glared at him.

While the others were joking, turning their attention to teasing Sam, Dean moved underneath Anna's window. Before he could decide against it, he quietly called "Hey! Charlie!"

After a moment, Charlie stuck her head out the window to look at Dean, "Waddaya want?" She demanded, but she was half-smiling.

Dean shuffled his feet, "Can you, uh, send Cas down? I wanna talk to him."

Charlie scrutinized him for a moment before calling out, "Lemme see what I can do," And ducking back inside. Dean heard voices bickering for a moment before she poked her head out again, "He's on his way down. You better not mess this up."

"I won't," He promised, sharing a smile with Charlie before she disappeared again. He sighed in relief, That was easier than I thought.

Dean waited by the front porch until he heard the door open. He turned toward the noise and sighed in relief when he saw Castiel in the doorway. He opened his mouth to say something witty but the words caught in his throat when he saw how Cas was dressed.

"Cas," He squeaked, clearing his throat before continuing, "Where is your shirt?"

"What?" Cas asked, then looked down at himself, "Oh. I, uh, can't find it?"

Dean laughed and Cas descended the steps toward him, "Lucky for me. C'mere," He said, leading Castiel to a corner shrouded in shadows where hopefully the others wouldn't see.

As soon as they were hidden, Dean whirled around and grabbed Cas, pulling him close for a long, deep kiss. For a moment, it felt like they were free to be themselves again, but the not so distant laughter of their friends kept them grounded to the present. They only pulled back from each other for air and Cas laughed.

"Hello to you too, Dean."

Dean laughed too, touching their foreheads together and sliding his hands down the back of Cas's pants, fiddling with the hem of his underwear, "Sorry," He mumbled, not sounding very apologetic.

"Don't be," Cas whispered, trying to keep their voices down. He reached his hands up and threaded them through Dean's hair, playing with the short spikes, "You always were a great kisser."

Dean chuckled, "So I've been told. How's the sleepover going?"

"Good," Cas replied, "The girls are fun and since I couldn't find my shirt, Charlie decided to announce how 'ripped' I am."

"And with good reason. You are pretty built."

"Which is the reason why I'm always on top, yes?"

Dean scoffed, "I'm stronger than you!"

"And the better wrestler," Cas agreed, "And yet, here we are." Then Cas turned them and pushed Dean up against the wall, moving his arms to cage Dean in. Castiel pressed against him, taking Dean's lips with his own and pushing hard enough so that Dean could feel the bricks on his back and Castiel's muscles on his chest.

His grip on Cas's butt tightened and Dean felt himself grinning. One of Cas's hands dropped down to cup Dean's face. He felt Cas's tongue licking at his lips, silently asking for permission. Dean happily obliged and opened his mouth. They scrambled in each other, trying to catch the taste.

To Dean, Cas tasted like popcorn and red wine, which was an odd combination but intoxicating nonetheless.

Dean tasted like Coke and burgers, which was probably what he had for dinner. The taste was nostalgic and left Cas feeling as if they were back under the boardwalk, cooled by the ocean breeze and hidden from the summer sun.

It was hard to believe it had hardly been two weeks since they had last kissed like that, without (much) restraint, but they were excited and a little desperate. They didn't know whether they would be able to do that anytime soon since Dean just wasn't quite ready to come out to his friends. Any moment alone with the other was precious and not to be wasted.

As Cas moved his hand under Dean's shirt and lifted it up just past his belly button, a light was shone on them and Kevin's voice called out " _Dean_?"

The two boys sprang apart and tried desperately to fix themselves and make it look like they hadn't just been making out in the shadows. They were both tomato red and visibly disgruntled. Cas tried to catch Dean's eye, but he was stubbornly looking everywhere else. Had it been Sam who had found them, Dean would have just given the finger and Sam would have walked away with a joke. But Sam had left with Ruby for Makeout Point, leaving Dean alone to face his friends' wrath.

"Geez, Kev," Dean grumbled, "Put that going away, will ya? I think I'm going blind!"

"Oh, right," Kevin said, turning off the flashlight. As his eyes adjusted, Dean could see that Kevin and Benny were grinning smugly while Gabriel looked disgusted and shocked.

Before Dean could come up with an excuse, Gabriel shouted at Dean, "You come to _my_ house just so you can make out with _my_ cousin?"

"Uh," Dean said slowly, trying to think of anything, anything at all, to make the situation better, "Yes?" _Fucking brilliant, Dean._

"Gabe," Cas tried but Gabe held out a finger and verbally shushed him.

"Ah ah ah! It's bad enough that I have to see one of my best friends and my cousin feeling each other up-"

"What?" Came a screech from above. Soon Anna, Jo, and Charlie were poking their heads out of the window to look at the scene below them.

"What's going on?" Anna demanded. She and Jo were surprised and curious, but Charlie took one look at Dean and Cas, how they were close enough to brush hands and looked equally disheveled, and screeched in excitement.

"No!" She grinned, leaning forward, "Oh I _so_ called it! I called it! Whoo! Yeah Dean! And good on you Cas!"

It took about one whole second before the rest of the girls got it and exploded into excited shrieks. The guys laughed, although Gabriel still seemed a little angry.

Dean was blushing more than he ever had in his life. And that was including his first time with Cas, during which he had been a mess of awkwardness and embarrassment. (Still felt great, though, for the record)

He covered his eyes and part of his face with one hand, as if that would hide him from the others. Castiel picked up on his discomfort and took hold of his free hand.

"Well," He said, "At least now you don't have to worry about coming out."

Dean turned his head to face Cas and tried for a glare, failing epically. Instead he just sighed, "I guess you're right."

As if things couldn't get any worse, they heard Anna's dad's booming voice from inside, yelling "What's going on out there?!"

The Hunters scampered away and the girls ducked inside. Benny turned back and waved at Dean, "Come on!"

Cas and Dean shared a look before Cas pulled him in for a quick kiss, "Go on," He said with a smile, letting go of Dean's hand, "I'll see you later?"

Dean grinned, "Definitely," And slapped Cas's ass, grinning at his surprised shout, before running to catch up with the other Hunters. Cas watched him go for a moment before climbing back up into Anna's room, where he was promptly greeted by squeals of delight.

"Way to go!" Anna praised, hugging her cousin tight.

"I can't believe you just landed Dean Winchester!" Jo said, going for a high five which Cas awkwardly returned.

"I'm impressed," Charlie said sagely, "You've been taught well."

Cas scoffed, "You didn't teach me anything. We were together all summer."

The girls gasped.

"But I thought you said you were just friends, and you had a crush on him?" Anna said.

Cas shrugged. Cat was out of the bag now, "I never said that, I just kind of implied it. Dean had never been with another guy before and he wasn't ready to come out to his friends yet, so I just went along with it."

"So," Jo leaned forward, "Does this make him....?"

"Gay?" Charlie finished, "Not really. If I had to guess, I would say he's bisexual."

Cas nodded in response. Anna and Jo looked confused.

"What's that?" Anna asked tentatively. She had zero problems with Castiel or any of her friends being queer, but she wasn't exactly educated in the sexualities. Hell, no one was, since it was technically a 'sin'. Cas didn't buy that for a second, but it was the society that was America. Canada was a little more forgiving, but not by much.

"It's when someone is attracted to both males and females," Cas explained patiently, "Dean generally feels more attraction for girls, but he can feel attracted to guys too."

"Well," Jo said thoughtfully, "I guess it makes sense now why he was acting weird at the rally."

Cas smiled, "Yeah, he was a little caught off guard, to say the least." Then he looked at Charlie, who still seemed rather smug, "And what do you mean, you called it?"

Charlie shrugged, grinning proudly, "It's takes one to know one, Cassie. And I've known Dean Winchester for years. He was discreet, just not as much as he thought he was."

"Wait," Jo said, turning around to better face Charlie, "Are you trying to tell me that you knew this whole time?"

"No!" Charlie defended, smirking, "I had very strong suspicious, but I wasn't one hundred percent sure until tonight."

"And you never thought to mention this until now?" Anna asked.

Charlie shrugged, "Wasn't my place."

Jo snorted, "Not that it matters, but it would have been nice to know," Then she turned to Cas, "So how did you guys meet?"

Cas smiled, "Actually, it's a pretty funny story." He laughed as the girls shuffled in closer, eager to hear what he had to say, "It was my first day here and I saw Dean jump into the water to save a girl whom I later found out was drowning. He didn't know her and the lifeguard wasn't paying attention I guess. He got her to safety but saw me and I think he was showing off a little bit. But he slipped and hit his head, so I had to check if he was okay."

"Didja do CPR?" Charlie teased.

Cas shook his head, "No, didn't need to. He woke up almost immediately after and seemed convinced that I had somehow saved him and insisted on repaying me with lunch. We just kept hanging out after that and it kinda just turned to something else. I can't really say how or when, to be honest."

"That's really sweet," Anna said with a smile, "You guys are so lucky to have such a romantic story."

Cas shrugged, "The romance doesn't really matter to me. I know that he cares about me, and I care about him. That's what's important."

The girls smiled and pleaded for more details. Castiel happily obliged.

As Dean jogged to catch up to his friends, he tried not to notice their smirks aimed at him.  
  
"What?" He snapped finally.  
  
"Nothing," Kevin said with a shrug, "It's just that we didn't know you swung that way."

"Yeah, well," Dean huffed, "I swing both ways, so..." He trailed off, not quite sure what to say.

Benny slapped a hand on Dean's shoulder, "It's alright, brother. It doesn't bother us in the least."

"It bothers me!" Gabriel argued, "How dare you taint my poor, innocent Cassie?"

Dean scoffed, "I wasn't the one doing the tainting, Gabe."

Suddenly they all fell silent, as if simultaneously remembering the conversation on Monday's lunch. Dean stopped in the middle of the road, feeling the weight of their realization settling on his shoulders.

"So," Kevin finally ventured, stopping to face Dean and obviously trying to hide a smile (totally failing, by the way), "Any chance that Cas would be the beach babe you spent all summer banging?"

Dean looked at his feet, then back up at his friends, "Maybe."

It was silent as the guys let that sink in. Kevin had been half-joking, really. However, it was still kind of a shock. The Dean Winchester, Lady Killer King, had spent the summer having sex with a guy. They didn't think any less of him for it, but it was just...hard to take in, is all.

Gabriel was the first to break the silence, "Oh _ew_. No thanks. Did not need that. In fact, I am just going to pretend like I never heard that. Castiel is still a virgin and he did not bang one of my best friends. Nope."

Dean barked a laugh, able to breathe once the crushing weight of the silence had lifted, "Dude, trust me, I was not his first."

Gabriel then put his index fingers in each ear and obnoxiously sang "La la-la la la-la, I can't hear you! La la la la la lalalalalalala!"

Kevin laughed and Benny sighed, slapping a hand on Dean's shoulder, "Brother, we don't think any less of you for whom you love or whatever gender you sleep with. You're still a Hunter and our friend."

"Yeah," Kevin walked closer and leaned on Dean, "I mean, we were already friends with Charlie, why would you or Castiel be any different?"

Dean couldn't help smiling. Although it wasn't exactly the way he wanted to come out, he was happy that his friends were there to support him. He was downright thankful for their friendships even Gabe, who in his own way, was supporting Dean. They were the Hunters, and nothing short of the supernatural could break them apart. Hell, even if the gates of Hell opened up and demons swarmed the earth along with all the other baddies, Dean wasn't entirely sure that they wouldn't remain friends.

Meanwhile, Sam and Ruby were furiously making out in the back of the Impala at Makeout Point, oblivious to the drastic turn of events to both of their gangs.

Both of them were in nothing but their underwear and working very quickly to remove that too.   
As Sam slipped Ruby's bra off, they were jostled when something suddenly rammed into the parked car.

Sam sat up immediately and tossed Ruby a shirt. He looked out the window and saw spray-painted flames before the car rammed into the Impala again.

"Hey!" Sam yelled, opening the door and stepping out. He was aware that he was in nothing but his underwear (it was suddenly a lot colder), "Hey!"

Lucifer stopped his car and grinned at Sam. He had two girls on each arm; Sam recognized one as Meg, an old friend of Ruby's. The other he didn't know. "Hey, Sammy," Lucifer drawled, "What are you doing here?"

"What do you think?" Sam snapped back.

"Ooh," Lucifer tutted, "How rude. Aren't old pals supposed to be nicer to each other?"

Sam clenched his fists. A couple of years ago, he and Dean had had a massive fight. Sam started hanging around Lucifer for a little bit. He very quickly realized the situation he was in but couldn't seem to get himself out of it. Finally one day Dean had come to his rescue and they made up, Sam's ties cut with Lucifer for good. But the gang rivalry was bigger than ever and both gangs took every opportunity they could to make the other look bad.  
  
"We were never friends," Sam hissed, "Leave! You're wrecking Dean's car."

"Oh?" Lucifer snarled, "Well in that case..." Lucifer rammed into the car one last time and Sam jumped out of the way with a yelp. Lucifer cackled and the girls laughed. As he started to drive away, he called back "By the way, you're in a "No parking" zone!" Then he sped off in a laugh and a puff of smoke.

"The whole place is a "no parking" zone!" Sam called back lamely. Then he sighed and turned back to the car, looking very banged up. "Oh," Sam said in distress, running his hands through his hair, "Dean is going to kill me!"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


	6. Sad Stories and Grease Lightning

 

"Oh," Dean said as he slid out from under his car, "I am _so_ going to kill you."

The Hunters stood in the Winchester family mechanics garage, which was occupied by Dean's Impala. The boys all wore their usual outfits of jeans and leather jackets, but Dean had shed his in favour of a jumpsuit, now covered in grease from the bottom of the car.

"Aw man," Sam said apologetically, "I'm sorry Dean. Is it bad?"

"Honestly," Dean said, standing up and wiping off his hands with a rag, "It's not bad at all. Nothing's broken and the dents can be hammered out and painted over. Besides, I've been meaning to add a few adjustments."

Sam sighed in relief. Dean jabbed a finger at him and scowled, "What's gonna get you killed though, is the fact that you riled Lucifer up enough to damage Baby that much!"

"Hey," Sam protested, "I didn't start it! He just rammed into the car and I told him to get lost."

"Which is all the encouragement little Lucy needs," Gabe spoke up, leaning against the tools table and eating a candy bar, "Believe me, you wanna tell him off, but it'll only make it worse. Better to just ignore him and he'll go away sooner or later."

"Brother," Benny said, getting up from a stool by the bar counter, "None of us like it, but unless you're cruisin' for a bruisin' on purpose, it's best to leave the Demons be."

"Yeah," Kevin agreed, sitting at the bar, "We should just leave them alone."

Sam grumbled in disagreement but didn't speak up. He knew that they were right, but he did not like the idea of simply letting them be. He hated the Demons the most, except maybe for Dean. Both brothers shared their father's trait for holding grudges.

"Well what's done is done," Dean grumbled, picking through different tools, sliding them into his belt, and lying back down on the board, "All we can do about it right now is fix her up. Heaven knows she deserves it, after dealing with you n' Ruby."

Sam rolled his eyes and the others laughed. He walked over to the mini fridge and grabbed a can of pop, walking back over to the closed garage door and leaning on it.

"Oh come on, Dean," Kevin teased, "Like you and Cas haven't done worse in there."

Dean flicked him the finger and slid back under the car while Sam choked on the coke he had been trying to drink.

" _What_?" Sam cried out, wiping his mouth.

"You didn't know?" Gabriel mocked, "Why, Samuel! I thought you two were closer than that!"  
  
"No, that's not it," Sam said, trying to figure out what was going on, "I've known about him and Cas since the beginning," He scowled, "And don't call me Samuel."

"You knew and you never told me?" Gabe gasped.

Sam rolled his eyes and swirled his pop around, "'Course not. Wasn't my place to say."

"So I'm guessing your dad doesn't know, then?" Kevin asked.

Both brothers were about to reply when they were cut off by a sharp voice, "What don't I know?"

Dean jolted and hit his head off of the bottom of the car. He hissed a curse and slid out. Then he scrambled to his feet and tried to think of anything, anything at all-

"And what did you do to your car?" He demanded angrily, gesturing at the dents.

"Oh," Sam said sheepishly, "Um, actually-"

"I took it out last night with a girl," Dean interrupted, "Some idiot wasn't looking where he was going and dented the car. It's nothing major, but I wanted to do another full check up."

"Hmph," John huffed. He shot each of the Hunters a look before turning back to Dean, "You should be more careful. And if you're worried about me knowing about all the girls going with you up to Make-Out, don't worry, I know." Then he smirked and walked away, calling over his shoulder, "It's a Saturday, so I'm going home. Feel free to use what you need but make sure to lock it up."

"Sure Dad," Dean called back. John walked out the side door and the sound of it shutting broke the silence. All five boys let out a collective sigh of relief.

"I'm guessing that's a no, then," Kevin prompted. Dean shot a glare again him before going back to working on the car.

John had a way of making an entire room tense just by walking in. Dean always stiffened and stood up straighter when John Winchester entered a room. He spoke clearly and gave curt, quick answers. Sam was always rebelling against their father, but Dean followed orders. The other Hunters were simply made uncomfortable by John. Even when they were little kids, he hadn't been a friendly man. Their parents said that John had never been overly friendly but he was certainly never rude. After his wife died during her second childbirth, though, he became distanced and closed off. Very many people had very different opinions on John Winchester, but the general consensus was that he wasn't a great father.

It was silent for a minute before Sam quietly said, "You know you gotta tell him sometime, right?"

"Yeah, I know," Dean grumbled from underneath the car, "But sometime isn't today. Gotta make sure I do it right. Preferably after dinner and after his team's won a game. Timing is everything with Dad."

"Wait," Gabriel said, straightening up off the work table and making a 'time out' sign with his hands, "Does Cas know that you haven't told him?"

Dean scoffed, "Of course."

"And what does he think about it?"

Dean stopped for a second, two wires in his hands. He had known that after coming out to his friends, there would be a lot of questions. So far, very few had been about his sexuality and instead more focused on Cas.

He took a breath before going back to work and saying, "Well, he's not exactly happy about it. He'd rather if people knew we were a thing, but he also understands what I'm going through. He's been pretty patient, so I'm lucky. He's mentioned something about his coming out not going well, but he won't go into detail and I have more tact than to ask him to. So I guess he's sympathetic."

Dean stopped working when he realized that no one was talking. He slid back out and looked at everyone.

Gabe had gone a little pale and had lost all teasing grandeur. The other boys looked a little frightened as well, mostly because Gabriel was hardly ever so serious.

"What?" Dean asked tentatively, "What is it?"

Gabe seemed to shake himself out of the trance and look at the others. He still had an air of seriousness about him when he spoke, "Okay, I probably _should not_ be telling you this and you can't tell Castiel that I'm telling you this, but you should know."

Dean rolled the rest of the way out and repositioned himself so he was sitting on the board, "What are you talking about?"

Gabe sighed, "I'm talking about Cas's coming out."

"I'm guessing it wasn't good," Sam tempted.

Gabriel laughed harshly, "You bet it wasn't. Nearly tore the family apart and Castiel blamed it all on himself."

"What?" Dean demanded. He wasn't surprised about Cas blaming it on himself, he had known Cas long enough to know that he would be happy to take someone else's sins onto himself without complaint, like some vigilante angel. He wasn't happy to hear about it though.

"Yeah," Gabriel said wearily, "We were about 12 when it happened. We hadn't been there, of course, but we heard about it soon enough. One night, Anna came and woke me up, saying that she had gotten up to get a glass of water and heard Mom and Dad fighting. So we snuck out of bed to listen to them and we found that they were on the phone with Cas's parents. We could only catch their end of the conversation, but from what we gathered, Castiel had done something bad and it was a big deal. The phone call ended and we ran back to our beds, hoping it was just a dream. But the next day, our folks sat us down and asked us if we knew what being gay meant."

The boys had completely fallen silent during Gabriel's story and listened intently as he took a breath and continued wearily, "We told them that of course we didn't, we were twelve. We thought that we were in trouble or something. But then they told us these exact words that I can never forget, 'being gay is a very bad thing. It's when a boy lusts after a boy and a girl lusts after a girl. It's disgraceful and unholy.'"

Dean clenched his fists. Obviously Anna and Gabriel's parents had gotten a lot better, but the fact they even used to think like that was terrible. And to tell their kids that. It wasn't uncommon, since they lived in the fifties and anything like that was tucked neatly away from prying eyes; it was simply how their society worked. But it in no way made it right.

"Then what?" Benny asked softly.

Gabe crossed his arms and continued, "Well, then they told us that the day before, Castiel had told his parents that he was gay. They spent a good ten minutes explaining how this wasn't okay and how it was wrong and whatever, but Anna and I hardly got a word of it. I couldn't tell you for the life of me what they said. We couldn't believe that little Cassie could be something so bad. He was the polite, kind one. He was always the one keeping us out of trouble. It was so weird for him to be the one in trouble and there wasn't anything we could do. Then they told us that even though Castiel said he was gay, he really couldn't be. He was mistaken, surely, and he would come to his senses sooner or later. And when he did, we needed to be ready to forgive him," Gabriel scoffed, "It was terrible, because he didn't back down. One thing about Castiel is that he's stubborn, and he refused to be shut down and shoved away. His parents were furious and our parents kept in contact, offering whatever advice they could. Finally one day, about two months later, they decided to send Cas to some reform camp or whatever for gays. Fortunately, it was too expensive and they couldn't afford it at the time, so Cas got to stay. We managed to talk to him, during insane hours of the night. He hated what he was going through, and he felt so alone because we were so far away. Not too long after, his parents decided to accept him but our folks weren't having any of that. They sat us down again and told us how wrong our aunt and uncle were, how terrible Cas was. Our parents and his argued about it for months until they stopped talking altogether. The whole family heard about it and most of them blamed the drama on Cas.

"After about two months of radio silence, Cas's family came to the family Christmas gathering. People expected them to be completely changed, or crying, or mean, or whatever. But he just walked in the same Cas we had known for years. His parents were more nervous than he was. We spent the holidays talking as if nothing had changed. And nothing had, really. Castiel was still our favourite cousin. Pretty soon, everyone got over it and loved everyone again. Well, except Lucifer's folks and him," Gabriel shrugged loosely, "But who cares about them. Now, we all have a little for respect for Cassie and his folks."

"Wow," Kevin said softly, "I had no idea that it would be that bad."

Sam shook his head, "And I had thought Charlie's story had been bad."

Gabe spread his hands, like what can you do? and turned to Dean, who was staring at his hands.

"Well?" He asked.

Dean didn't look up for a moment. It was no wonder Cas had never gone into detail about coming out, or even talk about it really. Dean had only ever known living in a small family, so he couldn't imagine dozens of relatives all hating him. He clenched his fists in anger and looked up at Gabriel, "He didn't deserve any of that."

Gabe shrugged and crunched the wrapper in his fist, "You're right about that. So while Cassie's story is sad, do keep it in mind when you're facing John." Gabe then tossed the wrapper into the trash and turned back to Dean, smiling, "So, whatcha gonna do to her?"

Deciding to take Gabriel's generous out, Dean stood up with a sigh and gestured at the car, "Well, I already told ya I'm planning on racing her. I need to make the engine more efficient, get some new wheels maybe. Not to mention a coat of heavy-duty paint. No scratches on my Baby."

"There ya go," Benny called, tossing Dean a hammer to bang out the dents.

"Lookin' as smooth as grease!" Kevin grinned.

"And faster than lightning!" Sam added.

"Hey, I know!" Gabe cried excitedly, "Let's call her Grease Lightning!"

The boys were silent for a moment, exchanging silent glances and thoughts. Then they all collectively shrugged and said "Nah."

"'Baby' is good enough for me," Dean said as he slid back under, "And she's gonna be the best car to race."

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


	7. The Frosty Palace

As Sam and Dean pulled into the Frosty Palace's parking lot, they heard a loud car engine revving and tires tearing down the street. As they got out, they saw two girls crossing the road as a black, flame-painted car bore down on them.

One of the girls dropped her books but left it in fear of getting run over. The tires crushed the book as it drove over it, sending papers flying. Lucifer could be seen driving and whooping excitedly.

"Look Dean," Sam said irritably, gesturing at the car quickly fading into traffic, "Those Demons are asking for it!"

He turned to Dean to say something else, but stopped when he saw his distant expression.

"Dean?" He tried, "Hey, Earth to Dean."

"Huh?" Dean seemed to snap out of his funk, "Oh. Sorry Sammy."

"You've been thinking about Cas and Gabe's story again, haven't you?" Sam asked with a hint of worry, "Look, don't think about it too much. It's good that Gabriel told us that, but it shouldn't change anything. I'm sure you'll come out to Dad and everyone when-"

"Dammit Sammy, if you finish that sentence I swear I'll knock you out," Dean warned with a hint of amusement. He smiled but looked at his feet before continuing, "I know that you're all there to support me. Just...waiting for the right time." He looked back up at Sam, "And don't sweat it so much, I'm the queer one. Come on, let's go inside; the others are already here."

Before Sam could say anything else, Dean was already halfway through the door. He huffed in annoyance, but he didn't expect much else from his older brother. They were both terribly stubborn, but at least they were truthful. If Dean said that he would come out when he was ready, he would come out when he was ready. Sam wondered how long it would be until then.

Inside the restaurant, it was filled with kids at tables, waiters and waitresses walking around precariously with food and drinks on trays, bright colours, and upbeat music playing from the jukebox. The Hunters sat near it, in a booth with red cushions and a white table.

As the brothers made their way over, Dean noticed Castiel and some girl sitting in the back, upper level, at a table for two. A couple of books were laid out on the table, as well as two milkshakes. Dean recognized the girl, but couldn't remember the name. She was pretty, with blonde hair and blue eyes. She leaned over the table just slightly, played with her straw, licked her lips, and drummed her painted nails daintily on the table.

She was _flirting_ with Castiel.

Thankfully, Cas either wasn't noticing and/or not caring. He was focused on whatever was on the table and didn't look up. Dean wanted to catch his eye, but no such luck. He guessed that it was for the best, since they were in public. So he sat down with his back to their table and tried to not look back at them.

The Hunters greeted them enthusiastically as they took their seats. Once everyone was comfortable, Benny spoke.

"Well, Hunters. The meeting for Thunder Road is now in session."

"Oh!" Kevin piped up, "I heard that last year, the police were already there and waiting for them when everybody showed up."

"Well we don't need to worry about the fuzz," Gabe grinned, "Baby's faster than any of those old cop cars!"

"Isn't your dad a cop?" Sam asked sarcastically.

While the Hunters were talking, Dean kept glancing over his shoulder at Cas's table, hoping to be noticed. A small part of him warned that he was being a little ridiculous and acting jealously, but he elected to ignore that part. He wasn't doing anything wrong, just looking at his boyfriend. And his date. Without them knowing that he was looking.

As Dean looked, he saw Ruby come out of the women's bathroom, munching on some sort of red-flavoured ice cream cone. She smiled at Cas and walked down the stairs towards the Hunters. She quickly noticed Dean's eyes and the sour look on his face.

"Someone snakin' ya, Deanie?" She teased.

"Oh, bite the weenie, Ruby," He spat back.

She grinned and said "With relish," *before taking a big lick of her ice cream and walking away, ruffling Sam's hair as she went.

When she was gone, Sam turned back to his friends, "Y'know, I don't know about these girls much anymore."

"Well you know," Gabe smirked, "Maybe we should all take a page outta Dean's book." Then he leaned over and started making kissy faces at Kevin, who sat directly across from him.

Cas looked up from his work at the girl across from him. She had offered to help catch him up on the differences in the two curriculums (there weren't really any, other than a little bit of American history. But Canadian history had already taught him the basics of that**) and suggested that they go to the local ice cream place, the Frosty Palace. Cas hadn't thought that it would be the best atmosphere for studying, but he very quickly realized that she had asked him on a date. And she was flirting very hard.

Castiel had learned over the years that it was easiest to pretend like he had no idea that they were flirting and let them figure out the rest. They had been at the restaurant for a while and she didn't seem to catch the hint.

But Cas certainly caught the hint that Dean was there. He could feel his eyes boring into his back every few seconds but refused to look up. They were in public, after all.

But when Cas saw Dean throw his head back and _laugh_ , filled with joy, Cas stood up.

"Where are you going?" Lauretta asked, pursing her pink lips.

"Just changing the song." Cas smiled and started to walk away, pulling a coin out of his pocket. He made a point to walk by the Hunters' table and wink at Dean before reaching the jukebox. The Hunter's laughed and Dean excused himself, slipping around the other way.

As he passed the bar, one of his female classmates caught him by the arm.

"Dean," She purred, "I love this song! Wanna dance?"

Dean hardly looked at her, not even remembering quite who she was, "Look, I can't talk right now."

She laced her arms around his waist and leaned in closer. Dean leaned back a little.

"Oh come on," She pouted, "You promised that we would get together this summer, and you were nowhere to be found!"

"I'm sorry," Dean apologized, gently prying her off, "But I really can't talk right now."

He started to walk away to the jukebox where Castiel was flipping through the songs, barely holding in laughter.

"What's so funny?" Dean asked, leaning on the music machine.

Castiel smiled up at him, "Well, Dean Winchester. I had no idea you were here."

"'Course you didn't," Dean said with a smile, "How are you on this fine day?"

Cas tried not to laugh and failed.

"I was doing alright, but everything's better now that you're here."

"Oh," Dean teased, "You're making me blush."

"I bet I can make you blush harder," Cas deadpanned, turning back to the music.

"Oh yeah?" Dean asked, a challenge in his tone.

Without even looking up, Cas said "Fourth of July. Under the dock."

It took Dean a second, but he remembered the night of bravery, new things, and throwing caution to the wind. It didn't take long for his nose, cheeks, and ears to turn tomato red.

"Okay," he admitted in defeat, "You win this time."

Then he nodded in the direction of Loretta, where she sat impatiently, "Who's she?"

Cas continued to deadpan, "Oh, just a friend. She suggested that we come here to study."

"I see." Dean looked over at her and waved. She waved back with an air of confusion and Cas had to smother his snort of amusement.

"You know she thinks it's a date, right?" Dean asked him.

Castiel finally looked up at Dean, "I'm gay, not stupid. And don't worry, I'm planning on letting it slip that I like guys. Casually."

"Casually?" Dean asked incredulously, "Don't make me laugh! Ha ha ha." His laugh was very dry and filled with sarcasm, which made it very hard for Castiel not to laugh.

"Oh like you can talk," Cas argued back. He turned to face Dean and poked him in the chest. "You can't even come out to your father. I'm coming out to a complete stranger." Then he turned back to the music, pleased with the lost expression on Dean's face.

"Okay you got me," Deam grumbled. Then he perked up, "Oh! There's a wrestling tournament this weekend! Dad and Sammy are gonna come and watch. You're welcome to join them."

"Hmm," Castiel pretended to think for a moment before grinning up at Dean, "Sweaty guys wrestling half-naked? And you're participating? Do you even need to ask?"

Dean laughed, "Honestly, I'm surprised more people don't know you're gay, with half the things you say!"

"It's a mystery," Cas said, glancing over at Loretta, where she seemed to be growing more impatient, "Hey, do you think she'll go with me to the televised dance if she knows I'm gay?"

"What? No!" Dean said immediately.

Cas chuckled, "What's the matter? Scared she'll snatch me away? It's not like we can go together and I think it would be fun to go."

"I know," Dean said grumpily, "But what if she makes a move or something? What if she tells everyone you're dating?"

"Dean Winchester," Cast said in mock awe, "Is this jealousy I'm sensing?"

"Of course not!" Dean argued, "I'm just a little protective, is all!"

Cas raised his eyebrows.

"Okay, so maybe I'm a little jealous."

"Ha!" Cas laughed triumphantly and selected a song.

"But I have every right to be," Dean defended, "Since I can't go to the dance with my best guy."

"Smooth," Cas commented, slipping in the coin, "So who do you suggest I go with?"

"Anna."

"My cousin? That's lame."

"I don't know," Dean sighed, "Maybe one of the Angels?"

"You just really don't want me going to the dance with a date, do you?" Cas asked, leaning forward on the jukebox and resting his arms in top of it.

"Yes, well no, I mean," Dean sighed and ran his fingers through his hair, "I guess I don't want people after you?"

"That's sweet," Cas admitted, "But a little unrealistic, Dean. Not that I would actively date anyone else, but I'm sure that people will flock to both of us since they don't know we're together. We both saw it today." He gestured loosely at the place where the girl whom had grabbed Dean earlier sat, "It's just a part of our lives."

For some reason, that didn't sit well with Dean. He didn't like the idea of being forced to hide who they were. Sure, he was actively doing it, but that was because he didn't think he could quite handle the pressure just yet. Dean didn't really like being forced to do anything. Sometimes, especially with his father, he swallowed his pride and did it. But for the most part, Dean and his by her had some problems with authority.  
  
So, against his better judgement, Dean leaned down and kissed Castiel.

Cas was surprised, but quickly leaned into it. The kiss was soft, and didn't last longer than a minute. Dean pulled back and smiled cockily, but his smile faded when he realized that the entire restaurant had gone quiet.

The music was still playing softly, but all other noise had ceased. The students, kids who Dean had grown up with, stared in shock at the two boys. Even the waitresses were surprised and even kind old Mildred, who owned the joint, stopped to stare at the couple.  
  
Many of the boys and a few of the girls looked disgusted; the rest seemed too shocked. Loretta, who was still sitting at her table, looked downright furious.  
  
For a terrible moment, Dean's heart stopped. Hardly a few seconds had passed, but the tension was so thick, one could cut it with a knife.  
  
This is it, Dean thought, I've ruined everything with one, stupid kiss. And why? Because I have an authority problem? What'll happen to me? Shit, what'll happen to Cas?

Dean's terrible thoughts were interrupted by slow, sarcastic clapping. Everyone turned to see Gabriel, sitting on the top of the booth's chair, clapping with a smug look on his face.

"Well well well," He called out, "Look's like our Deano grew a pair. But did it really have to be my family that you kiss in public? I have to say, I'm quite disturbed. But that's just because he's my family, so no one else has any reason to have a problem with this," he said the last part dangerously and glared at everyone in his sight. Dean also noticed Benny casually picking his fingernails with a knife, while Kevin was nonchalantly playing his his switchblade. Even Sam looked menacing, wearing a look that dared anyone to disagree.

The message was clear: you got a problem, you deal with the Hunters.

Petty soon, everything returned to normal. The waitresses served food and drinks, the kids ate and talked. But a fair few people kept shooting glances at Cas and Dean, as well as the Hunters.

Dean had never felt so grateful to his gang. Of course, that's what they were for; watching each others' backs. The Hunters had made enough of a name for themselves that they weren't necessarily feared, but they certainly weren't people you wanted as your enemies. Even Kevin, who looked small and weak, and Gabe, who was 90% jokes, were good fighters. They often relied on tricks and traps, which made them forces to be reckoned with. Not to mention Sam, who was a giant, and Benny, who was the fastest with the best reflexes. Dean himself was arguably the best fighter; extremely proud, strong, and good with many weapons in any situation.

Cas sighed and looked at Dean, smiling softly, "You've really done it now," he said, but he didn't sound mad. "Now there's no chance that Loretta will go with me."

"Uh," Dean tried for a winning smile, "Sorry."

Castiel huffed, "You could at least try to sound apologetic. Now I've got to go over and talk to her, not to mention pay for lunch. You owe me."

"I'll make it up to you," Dean promised with a grin.

Castiel laughed and walked away back to his table, where Loretta glared at Dean. He felt a little bad, since Loretta was nice. But hey, at least his point had been made clear.

Two days before the tournament, Dean was at wrestling practice. One of the things that he loved about school was the wrestling, and he was damn good at it. One look at the manor above his fireplace at moms would tell anyone that. Over the past couple of days, life had been fairly normal. News had spread very quickly about Dean and Cas, as every student seemed to be talking about it. But Dean hadn't heard from any adults, so he guessed that everyone had kept it to the student body. He was certainly grateful about that.

And as Dean stepped forward to face his sparring opponent, a great big guy who was all muscle and no brain, he was ready to completely focus on his wrestling. But that was stopped when the guy shied away from him.

"I'm not wrestling with you!" He snapped. Dean was surprised. He was used to opponents getting nervous before matching with him. But straight up backing out of a match was new. Dean wasn't sure why; the guy before him had a decent chance at winning because of his size and strength. Why was he backing down?

"C'mon, buddy," Dean said in frustration, "It's just practice, let's go already."

"No," He argued, taking a step back when Dean reached forward, "I'm not wrestling with a homo!"

Dean stopped, surprised. He hadn't gotten much of anything from the student population, other than a few poking remarks. Nothing that cut too deep and nothing he couldn't shrug off. He was happy with Cas and although he didn't love the new attention, he certainly wouldn't change it. He hadn't thought it would affect his wrestling though. In fact, he was furious that it was.

"Hey," Dean warned, "I'm not gay. I'm bisexual, big difference buddy."

"Still!" He protested, starting to attract the other guys' attention, "I don't want your hands on me! What if you cop a feel?"

Dean scoffed, starting to get more and more angry, "Dude, I have a boyfriend. Besides, if I wanted to, I would've done it already. Don't worry, you're not enough to make me unfaithful."

A couple of guys snickered, but his opponent shot them a glare before turning back to Dean, "You shut your mouth. You're going to Hell, you and your faggot boyfriend."

Oh, that set Dean off. He lunged at the guy before he could even have a second thought. In a split second, Dean was on top of him, pinning him to the ground and lifting his head by his shirt collar. He raised his fist to punch him when a familiar voice rang out, "What the hell do ya think yer doin'?"

Dean got off of the boy and faced the approaching Bobby. He clutched a clipboard tightly in one hand and his free one straightened his battered baseball cap. Dean knew Bobby as an uncle of sorts, or even a second father. Dean had grown up with Bobby and the two were extremely close. Even when Bobby got remarried to an old family friend, they still stayed as close as blood-bound family would. Dean sometimes felt closer to Bobby than he did his dad, yet he hadn't told either of them about his relationship with Castiel or his sexuality. He had been scared of being kicked off the team, but he knew Bobby wouldn't do that. No, his dad still proved to be the real problem.

When Bobby stood right in front of them, the entire team stopped to watch. It was always entertaining to see one of their own sassed into oblivion by Coach Singer.

"Well?" He demanded after a moment, "I ain't gettin' any younger standin' here."

Nervously, the big guy jabbed a finger at Dean, "I'm not wrestling him," He spluttered out.

Bobby glanced at Dean, who tried very hard to remain neutral. Then he turned back to the other boy, "Is that so? Well, why not?"

The boy opened his mouth, closed it, and then spoke again, "He-he's queer, sir. I don't want him feeling me up! It's not right! It's unholy!"

Bobby just raised an eyebrow at his proclamation before turning to Dean calmly. Dean, however, was not calm. This was so not how he wanted to tell Bobby. Would he get to come out to anyone the way he wanted to?

"That true, Dean?" Bobby asked, with an air of softness. Dean swallowed.

"Yeah. But for the record, I've got a boyfriend and I'm not exactly the cheating type."

Bobby huffed out a small laugh and smiled, "Good for you. Now," He turned back to Dean's opponent, "Cooper. If you really can't handle wrestling a loyal man, then I can knock you down a division."

Cooper glared at Dean for a moment before looking down at his feet and mumbling, "Fine. I'll wrestle him."

"Good," Bobby nodded. Then he turned to the others, "Let's get moving, princesses! The tea party's over!"  
  
When practice ended and the boys were dismissed, Bobby called Dean back. A couple of guys teased but went on to change.

As Dean walked over to Bobby where he checked his clipboard, his heart pounded. Bobby hadn't cared during practice, but that was in front of other people, his students. A con of being practically family with Bobby was that he wasn't afraid to get strict, so long as they were alone. What if he freaked out? What if he really did kick Dean off of the team? What if he told his dad?

"Yeah?" Dean prompted once he was within a safe distance.

Bobby sighed and set his clipboard down on a nearby balancing beam, "So, it's true that you've got a boyfriend?"

Dean nodded slowly, "Yeah." He wanted to say more, but he found his mouth going dry. Besides, what could he say? He had already told Bobby that much in practice.

Bobby cast him a sideways glance before straightening up and walking towards him. He clapped a hand on his shoulder and spoke.

"Look, son, I don't care who you fall in love with, as long as you're happy. Honestly, I'm surprised I didn't see it sooner. But you and your boyfriend are in for a rough ride. People aren't exactly as accepting as they should be. Today was a great example. But I'll always be here for ya, Dean."

Dean let out a breath he hadn't known he'd been holding. He smiled at Bobby, feeling completely relieved, "Thanks Bobby. That really means a lot to me."

Bobby smiled back and took his hand off of Dean's shoulder, turning back to his clipboard, "Ain't nothin' to it. And I ain't tellin' your father, that's your business."

"Really?" Dean asked in disbelief, "Are you sure?"

"Boy," Bobby turned back to Dean, "This can't be easy for ya and I ain't gonna pretend that I know what you're goin' through. But what I do know is that I will be here to support you no matter what. You need to tell your father sooner or later, and you do need to tell him on your own. But I promise to keep my mouth shut. Well," He smiled, "I oughtta tell Helen. I bet that Jo already knows and I don't really think Helen'll wanna be left outta the loop."

Dean smiled, "Yeah, of course. Thank you Bobby. I-I don't know what to say," Dean nervously rubbed the back of his head, "Honestly, the entire thing has been pretty scary. It's new and I have no idea what the hell I'm even doing and and I don't wanna screw this up for Cas because he already knows what he's doing and-"

"Dean," Bobby said sharply. Dean stopped short and looked at Bobby in shock. He hadn't even noticed that he had been rambling, "Cas?" Bobby asked, "Is this your boyfriend?"

Dean looked down sheepishly, "Yes?"

Bobby smiled and put his hand on Dean's shoulder again. Dean looked up in embarrassment, "Dean, your father may not agree with me, but I know that when it comes to relationships, you usually pick pretty good ones. And if this Cas boy has stuck with you through this whole mess, then I don't think he's going to ditch ya anytime soon. Just be good to 'im boy. He seems like a keeper."

Dean smiled, "Relax, Bobby, I'm not about to let him go that easily. And about Dad, I'll get around to it when I'm ready."

"That's my boy," Bobby smiled softly, "And I'm here if you ever need anything."  
  
"Thanks a million, Bobby," Dean glanced up at the clock in the gym, "I gotta go and meet Cas."

"Sure ya do," Bobby clapped his shoulder fondly, "Now get goin'. Don't want ya to be late for your Cas."

Dean smiled and jogged off to the change room. He felt so much better after talking to Bobby. He was starting to feel a little silly because every time he had come out to someone it had turned out significantly better than he had dared to hope. His brother didn't care, his friends laughed and didn't think any less of him, and Bobby just voiced his support. Thus far, the worst had been Gabriel getting pissed at Dean for dating Cas without Gabe's permission.

Finally, Saturday rolled around and Dean loaded onto the bus that would take him, Bobby, and the rest of the team to where the first wrestling tournament would be held. Since the last practice, no one had said anything to Dean about Cas or his sexuality, aside from a few friendly jibes. Cooper had refused to even be within five feet of Dean and wouldn't look him in the eye.

Dean didn't really care. One by one, his list of those he had to come out to was getting shorter. Thankfully, none of his coming outs had ended maliciously, even though none of them seemed to go according to plan. But that hadn't seemed to mattered. The only one that Dean had to be careful about was his father.

Dean wasn't sure what his dad would do. He had become so unpredictable over the years. He often disappeared to go hunting with friends with only a note and ten bucks on the counter as any sign of leave. Dean didn't know whether it was because his father was an ex-Marine, or if it was because of his mother dying, but John Winchester was fairly impulsive and didn't trust his sons. What would happen if he found out that his oldest, the one that was supposed to run the shop, the wrestling champion, had a boyfriend?

Dean decided not to think about it too much before the tournament. He was going to win.

 

 

  
*okay it doesn't completely fit for Dean's character to say "bite the weenie" but I just really fucking love that whole exchange and come on, I'm a mother fucking fanfic writer. I'm allowed to indulge a little.

** I am from Canada and I shit you not, we spend like two whole units on USA and whatever in history and social studies and shit. We know really basic American History. But ask an American about the war of 1812 and see what they say (we won that, btw. And got a chocolate factory named after a famous chick)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


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